HALTH
HALTH ONE
HALTH ONE HAVE ALL JOINED THE MASCOTTE CAMPAIGN. WE WERE VERY PLEASED TO SEE
THE OVERALL RESULTS.
REXHA NEWS CONTINUES TO POUR IN
TODAY IT WAS OXFORD UNIVERSITY
AT ASTRAZENECA SAYING THEIR
VACCINE IS HIGHLY EFFECTIVE
CHEAPER THAN OTHER POTENTIAL
VACCINES AS WELL AS EASIER TO
STORE AND SHIP.
SO LET'S TALK ABOUT IT WITH OUR
NINE HEALTH EXPERT DR PILAR
KOHLI.
LET'S START WITH THE DATA.
WHAT THEY DID IN THE STUDY,
WHAT IT TELLS US AS FAR AS
THE IMMUNE RESPONSE TO
THE VACCINE, WHAT HAVE WE
LEARNED?
SO WHAT'S INTERESTING IS
THE EFFICACY OF THIS VACCINE
WAS 70 PERCENT ON AVERAGE BUT
THEY TRIED TWO DIFFERENT DOSING
REGIMENTS AND THEY HAD VERY
DIFFERENT RESPONSES.
SO THE FIRST WAS GIVING A HALF
DOSE OF THE VACCINE FOLLOWED BY
A FULL DOSE ABOUT A MONTH OR
MORE LATER THAT ACTUALLY HAD AN
EFFICACY OF 90 PERCENT.
BUT IF THEY GIVE TWO FULL
DOSES, ONE DAY ZERO ONE.
AT LEAST 30 DAYS OR MORE LATER
THEY SAW AN EFFICACY ONLY 62
PERCENT.
AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT
THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY WAS A
LITTLE BIT SURPRISED BY THESE
FINDINGS BECAUSE YOU WOULD HAVE
EXPECTED THE INITIAL SHOT TO
TRIGGER THE IMMUNE SYSTEM AND
THEN THE BOOSTER TO HELP IT
EVEN MORE.
BUT WHY SHOULD A HALF DOSE WORK
BETTER?
AND PART OF THE REASON FOR THAT
WE THINK IS THAT MAYBE THAT
THAT FULL DOSE GIVEN INITIALLY
ACTUALLY TRIGGER SUCH A STRONG
REACTION THAT IT MAY ACTUALLY
SUPPRESS THE BOOSTER IMMUNE
REACTION.
SO WE'RE NOT ENTIRELY SURE.
BUT IT CERTAINLY DOES BEG
THE QUESTION OF WHETHER WE ALSO
NEED TO THINK ABOUT THESE TYPES
OF DOSING REGIMENS FOR SOME
OF THE OTHER VACCINES AND
THAT'S WHERE WE ALL BECOME VERY
POOR VACCINE EXPERTS.
BUT ONE SHOT'S BETTER THAN TWO
AND ALSO SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T
HAVE TO LIVE AT 100 DEGREES
BELOW ZERO ALSO BECOMES BETTER.
IS THAT THE ASTRAZENECA VACCINE
AT THIS POINT?
THOSE ARE THE BIG EDGES YOU'D
SAY OVER THE PFIZER AND
THE MODERNA VACCINES AT LEAST
WHAT WE KNOW TO THIS POINT?
THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT.
SO STORAGE IS CERTAINLY A BIG
PIECE OF IT BECAUSE THIS CAN
ACTUALLY LAST FOR SIX MONTHS AT
NORMAL REFRIGERATION
TEMPERATURE.
BUT I WANT TO TAKE EVEN A STEP
FARTHER AND TALK ABOUT THE TYPE
OF VACCINE THIS THIS SO THIS IS
A DNA VACCINE WHICH HAS BEEN
AROUND FOR DECADES AS OPPOSED
TO THE ASTRAZENECA MADONA
VACCINES WHICH ARE RNA
VACCINES.
SO IT'S ALSO MUCH CHEAPER TO
MANUFACTURE.
IT ONLY COSTS ABOUT TWO AND A
HALF DOLLARS AS OPPOSED TO
PFIZER AND MAJANO WHICH IS MORE
IN THE 20 TO TWENTY FIVE DOLLAR
RANGE.
THE STORY EJUST WE TALKED ABOUT
IS CERTAINLY A CONSIDERATION.
THE FACT THAT THIS VACCINE
TECHNOLOGY HAS BEEN AROUND FOR
SO LONG CERTAINLY MAKES US FEEL
GOOD ABOUT SAFETY BECAUSE IF
YOU RECALL A FEW MONTHS AGO WE
HAD THAT TRANSFER AS
MY LIGHTEST ADVERSE EVENT OCCUR
THAT CAUSED THE TRIAL TO PAUSE.
BUT IT SEEMS LIKE IT MAY NOT BE
RELATED TO THE VACCINE.
AND THEN OF COURSE FINALLY THIS
VACCINE ALSO SEEMS TO SUGGEST
THAT IT SUPPRESSES ASYMPTOMATIC
INFECTION NOT JUST SYMPTOMATIC
,WHICH IS CERTAINLY ANOTHER
EDGE OVER THE OTHERS.
SO I SEE A ROLE FOR THIS
VACCINE.
CERTAINLY IN THE LOW AND MIDDLE
INCOME OF COUNTRIES BUT ALSO
POTENTIALLY IN THE UNITED
STATES.
SO MEDICINE AND RESEARCH ARE
YOUR STRENGTHS.
BUT I WANT TO ASK YOU A LITTLE
BIT ABOUT THIS FROM A BUSINESS
STANDPOINT.
DID THESE COMPANIES COLLABORATE
AT ALL OR IS THIS ENTIRELY
COMPETITIVE?
AND IS THERE A CHANCE THAT
THREE VACCINES WILL ULTIMATELY
BE MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC
IN THE PUBLIC WILL BE CHOOSING
AMONG THE VACCINES?
YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S
THE LATTER, TOM.
THE COMPANIES COLLABORATED TO
THE EXTENT THAT THEY'VE ALL
REALLY ALIGNED ON THE MISSION
OF MAKING AFFORDABLE VACCINES
UP, DISTRIBUTING THEM IN A
WIDESPREAD FASHION.
BUT THE MECHANISMS BY WHICH
THE VACCINES WORK THE WAY IN
WHICH THEY'RE MANUFACTURED ARE
SO WIDELY DISPARATE.
AND IN MY OPINION THAT'S
ACTUALLY A BIG BOOST BECAUSE IT
REALLY DOES GIVE US THE
OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE DIFFERENT
MECHANISMS, DIFFERENT TYPES
OF CANDIDATES AGAIN WITH
DIFFERENT ADVANTAGES AND
DISADVANTAGES.
AND WHAT WE'RE SEEING WITH THIS
ONE IS THE OVERALL EFFICACY MAY
BE LOWER BUT IT'S EASIER TO
MANUFACTURE, EASIER TO
DISTRIBUTE POTENTIALLY MORE
LONGER TERM SAFETY DATA.
SO CERTAINLY THAT HAS A NICHE
AS OPPOSED TO THE ASTRAZENECA
AND MAIDANA ONES WHICH ARE MORE
EFFICACIOUS.
BUT A LITTLE MORE CHALLENGING
TO TRANSPORT.
IT'S HARD TO LOOK FORWARD TO.
WE THINK OF ALL THOSE BIG
PHARMA ADS THAT WE NOW SEE ALL
OVER OUR TELEVISIONS.
IF THEY WERE JUST TRIED TO
START MARKETING THESE AND
SPENDING MONEY ON THEIR VACCINE
VERSUS ANOTHER VACCINE AS WELL
AS JUST THE COMPETITIVE NATURE
OF THESE, IT'S GOING TO BE
INTERESTING TO SEE IN A VARIETY
OF WAYS.
BUT WE'LL