Novavax Begins Phase 3 COVID-19 Vaccine Trial in UK... Simultaneous Flu Vaccine Administration

Safety Confirmed for Two Types of Vaccines Against 'Twin-demic'
Immune Efficacy Targeted at Minimum 60% in Trials

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] American pharmaceutical company Novavax announced that it will begin Phase 3 clinical trials of its developing novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine in the United Kingdom. Next month, Phase 3 clinical trials involving about 30,000 participants are scheduled to take place in the United States. Expectations for the vaccine development are rising as Novavax's vaccine is evaluated to potentially secure efficacy and safety compared to other vaccines such as Moderna and Pfizer.

According to foreign media including The New York Times (NYT) on the 24th (local time), Novavax stated that it will start Phase 3 clinical trials of its COVID-19 vaccine with 10,000 volunteers in the UK. The age range of Novavax's volunteers is from 18 to 84 years old, with more than a quarter of them being elderly aged 65 or older. Novavax plans to recruit about 30,000 volunteers in the United States starting next month to begin Phase 3 clinical trials.

In this UK trial, about 400 participants will receive the flu vaccine simultaneously to investigate whether it is safe to administer both vaccines at the same time. This is known to be in preparation for the 'twindemic,' where two infectious diseases spread simultaneously as the flu season approaches in autumn and winter.

Earlier, on the 4th of last month, Novavax conducted a Phase 1 clinical trial with 56 participants, where all participants developed strong antibodies and very few side effects were observed. It was evaluated to have more stable efficacy and safety compared to other vaccines such as Moderna and Pfizer. Novavax is known to be developing a protein-based vaccine rather than an mRNA-based vaccine like Moderna or Pfizer. Protein-based vaccines are a method recognized for efficacy in other approved infectious disease vaccines such as the shingles vaccine, which includes coronavirus proteins with removed infectivity in the vaccine to induce antibody production.

Gregory Glenn, head of research and development at Novavax, said in an interview on the same day, "We are optimistic that we can confirm efficacy in the UK, where COVID-19 continues to spread," and added, "We are conducting clinical trials so that health authorities such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can verify evidence that the vaccine is effective." Novavax stated that the goal of the clinical trial is to demonstrate at least 60% efficacy compared to placebo.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.