Covid-19 vaccine -
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As we know, the development of a vaccine against Covid-19 looks like a sprint.
Under pressure, pharmaceutical companies must find a cure much faster than normal: between 12 and 18 months instead of ten years or more.
Condition in which the undesirable side effects, and in particular those in the medium or long term, cannot all be studied.
On Wednesday, for example, we learned that US health authorities have asked states to prepare the large-scale distribution of a vaccine against the coronavirus by early November.
But this Thursday, several leaders of pharmaceutical companies pledged to "cut corners" and to respect the standards of "safety" in this race for the vaccine, despite sometimes insistent calls to prefer speed.
"We will not sacrifice security under any circumstances"
"We will not cut back on anything," promised Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, during an exchange by videoconference with journalists.
"We will not sacrifice safety for any reason," said Kenneth Frazier, CEO of Merck.
The leaders were speaking at a press briefing by the International Federation of the Drug Industry (IFPMA).
Pfizer and its partner Biontech reported the first conclusive tests in early July, after tests on 45 people.
This project entered a phase of large-scale clinical trials at the end of July (phase 3), with 30,000 volunteers aged 18 to 35.
The two companies hope to complete phase 3 as early as next month.
The vaccine developed by the American biotech Moderna is also in phase 3 and has started large-scale trials on thousands of human participants.
“I understand” the skepticism about the mad race for vaccines, said Albert Bourla.
"Science is so politicized right now."
“But we will never seek authorization, no matter what the vaccine, until we feel it is safe and effective,” he concluded.
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