Clinical Trials of a Coronavirus Vaccine Back on Track

PARIS, KOMPAS.com – After a brief safety pause, clinical trials of a coronavirus vaccine believed to be one of the most advanced vaccines to rid of the novel virus resumed on Saturday.

During that brief moment, Covid-19 cases across the globe continued its upward ascent.

Promising hopes of a coronavirus vaccine were shattered earlier in the week when AstraZeneca and Oxford University announced they had “voluntarily paused” their vaccine trial.

When a UK volunteer developed an unexplained illness, both parties had to temporarily halt their measures.

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But on Saturday the trial was given the all-clear by British regulators to resume following a safety review.

The company also announced it was resuming clinical trials in Brazil next Monday after being given the green light there as well.

The global death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 916,000 with 28.5 million infections, while France and the United Arab Emirates posted grim new milestones for daily infections on Saturday.

And with billions still suffering from the fallout of the pandemic, a worldwide race for a vaccine is underway, with nine companies already in late-stage Phase 3 trials.

Even during the pause, AstraZeneca said it remained hopeful that the vaccine could still be available "by the end of this year, early next year".

Oxford University said that "in large trials such as this, it is expected that some participants will become unwell and every case must be carefully evaluated".

Read also: Vaccine Trial Volunteer Tests Positive for Covid-19 in Indonesia’s West Java

Charlotte Summers, lecturer in intensive care medicine at Cambridge University, said the pause showed the researchers' commitment "to putting safety at the heart of their development program".

"To tackle the global Covid-19 pandemic, we need to develop vaccines and therapies that people feel comfortable using, therefore it is vital to maintaining public trust that we stick to the evidence and do not draw conclusions before information is available," she said.

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