Lots of good news at the moment!

[FrugiFan]

www.bbc.com/news/health-53467022
A trial of a drug which could reduce ICU admission by 79%, and is already in use for other things so doesnt need human trials for side effects etc.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53469839
Promising news about one of the many vaccines in production.

Hospital admissions have not increased, more than 2 weeks after pubs and restaurants reopened.

Lots of reasons to think positive at the moment

I’m sure better treatment is part of it. Firstly they have the drugs that are making a difference. Secondly I read a piece from an ICU doctor talking about how their understanding of the disease has evolved and they’re getting better at simply observing patients and knowing when to act. Their learning curve has been so steep on this.

@HeyMacarona

Been following this thread.

Has anybody else noticed that the situation in Spain seems to be improving? Cases seem much lower, bit of hope?

Yes I noticed that, I wonder what they're doing to bring the figures down.

I have found this thread to be an enormous breath of positivity so thank you!

Myself and then DH spoke to a friend last night, however, who is (have to be vague here) quite high up in the NHS working in public health and she seemed quite cagey. DH thinks it's because she 'knows what's coming' but I am taking a bit of an ostrich approach with this and trying to focus on the positive elements on this thread instead.

They gave the impression the vaccine is a bit of a red herring, but I think it might be the Cambridge one rather than the Oxford one (one needs to be stored at a very low temp apparently). I didn't comment as I realise that this is their job whereas I am getting my info off Mumsnet! It would be great to hear, from those who seem to know a bit about what might be happening behind the scenes, what their views are and, if it's not too outing, how they know...?

@rubbishatballet @sproutsandparsnips

Jemimapyjamas I won't lie to you I have no real inside knowledge - all I can really say is that if and when the trial results indicate an effective and safe vaccine the hope is that we will be able to hit the ground running, and the earliest this is likely to happen is late this year. This would only be for a small proportion of the population. But I do think the general consensus is there will be one at some point.
Trying to remain positive at the moment. I still think we are in a better position than we were and I can't say how glad I am that my children are in school

@JemimaPyjamas

I have found this thread to be an enormous breath of positivity so thank you!

Myself and then DH spoke to a friend last night, however, who is (have to be vague here) quite high up in the NHS working in public health and she seemed quite cagey. DH thinks it's because she 'knows what's coming' but I am taking a bit of an ostrich approach with this and trying to focus on the positive elements on this thread instead.

They gave the impression the vaccine is a bit of a red herring, but I think it might be the Cambridge one rather than the Oxford one (one needs to be stored at a very low temp apparently). I didn't comment as I realise that this is their job whereas I am getting my info off Mumsnet! It would be great to hear, from those who seem to know a bit about what might be happening behind the scenes, what their views are and, if it's not too outing, how they know...?

@rubbishatballet @sproutsandparsnips

In what way did they give the impression that the vaccine is a bit of a red herring?

@JemimaPyjamas not sure I can add an awful lot more I'm afraid. I've no idea what's happening with the testing, but I have seen the request re prepping for the rollout of the mass vaccination programme. That gave a mid October start date (for start of rollout), but like I said in my earlier post it's reckoned internally to be more like mid November now. Very specific instructions, and yes it does need to be stored at a very low temp (-70c). I'm not directly involved with the planning and delivery work now so not sure of the absolute latest position, but it's definitely very much continuing apace. And I can only assume things wouldn't be quite so 'full steam ahead' if they weren't fairly sure they were close.

God after today we need something 😬

@BlueBlancmange They were quite hesitant about it due to the logistics of transporting and administering something that has to be kept so cold and would deteriorate after a few hours, or maybe even less.

Possibly delusional, but I think this is just one of the possible vaccines and hopefully the second frontrunner, or whatever you want to call it, might be more practical...?

@rubbishatballet I agree that it does seem promising that there are plans even though there are currently no fast guarantees. I don't know how things work within the NHS but that sounds positive, at least to me! I suppose at the moment things change all the time, and the politicians are also lying rather too frequently as well as a lot of money that has been wasted (like the money on the substandard PPE). I am trying to think positively though and remind myself that it's not just the idiots in parliament who are running this, but instead people who have more expertise.

Feel a bit down today so will continue watching this thread and try and pep myself up a bit. I feel as if so much is hanging on this vaccine situation but, until recently, vaccine trials were something I knew absolutely NOTHING about!

[quote JemimaPyjamas]@BlueBlancmange They were quite hesitant about it due to the logistics of transporting and administering something that has to be kept so cold and would deteriorate after a few hours, or maybe even less.

Possibly delusional, but I think this is just one of the possible vaccines and hopefully the second frontrunner, or whatever you want to call it, might be more practical...?

@rubbishatballet I agree that it does seem promising that there are plans even though there are currently no fast guarantees. I don't know how things work within the NHS but that sounds positive, at least to me! I suppose at the moment things change all the time, and the politicians are also lying rather too frequently as well as a lot of money that has been wasted (like the money on the substandard PPE). I am trying to think positively though and remind myself that it's not just the idiots in parliament who are running this, but instead people who have more expertise.

Feel a bit down today so will continue watching this thread and try and pep myself up a bit. I feel as if so much is hanging on this vaccine situation but, until recently, vaccine trials were something I knew absolutely NOTHING about![/quote]
I'd like to think the scientists would have taken the storage/distribution/administration elements into account when embarking on the project. It seems odd to think they would invest a huge amount of time and money into trying to develop an effective vaccine, only for it to fall at this final hurdle as that aspect hadn't properly been taken into consideration.

That's what I would have assumed too, it seems bonkers otherwise!

only for it to fall at this final hurdle as that aspect hadn't properly been taken into consideration

I know this is a positive thread but my pessimism is screeching!

You would think wouldn’t you, but may I present the current testing situation as exhibit A

It’s large, private, pharma companies behind these vaccines. They are a lot more organised and forward thinking than the government.

It’s difficult isn’t it. There have been so many cock ups that it’s difficult to ignore that side, but I’m desperately trying not to!

@TheKeatingFive yay! And this is the kind of thing we need to hear!

As I understand it the Oxford vaccine ( if it passes Phase III trials) will be OK in the UK, US, Europe etc but because of the way in which it needs to be stored and administered it will be more challenging to administer and distribute in the developing world.

Cambridge are in the very early stages of trialing a vaccine which would protect against most coronaviruses, so would protect against future mutations. It does not need cold storage and can be given by needle-free injection, so is an exciting proposition.

They've been given govt funding to develop it, but still very very early days.

www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/cambridge-developed-sars-cov-2-vaccine-receives-ps19million-from-uk-government-for-clinical-trial

@cathyandclare thank you for the link! This is the impression I’ve been getting, which is why I was disappointed and surprised at my friends apparent attitude over it. I was hoping for more optimism considering their job!

Omg how much more can we all take vaccine hurry up 😬

A nice news article here! It's nice to read anything positive isn't it?

www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/game-changing-coronavirus-breakthrough-discovered-4537472?fbclid=IwAR0zn9qQ6SyE-x0qvkRyRWFH1Wl8oru579pDLA2utIYIx4vYe0FEttUDT5U#ICID=Android_BristolPostApp_AppShare

'Our discovery of a druggable pocket could stop it firmly in its tracks' - Prof Christiane Schaffitzel'

The positive side of todays 6000+ cases is that more people appear to have been getting tests. That is crucial for the winter, and that is a positive.

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/24/close-to-100-accuracy-airport-enlists-sniffer-dogs-to-test-for-covid-19

We loved the dogs a while ago!

On 3rd Sept: 3 hospital deaths. By the 17th (2 weeks later & last date when data is fairly complete) this had gone up to 20.

On 9th March: 4 deaths. By the 23rd (2 weeks later) the number had gone up to 159.

We are in a very different situation to March..

@palacegirl77

On 3rd Sept: 3 hospital deaths. By the 17th (2 weeks later & last date when data is fairly complete) this had gone up to 20.

On 9th March: 4 deaths. By the 23rd (2 weeks later) the number had gone up to 159.

We are in a very different situation to March..

Credit to David Paton, on twitter, worth a follow if you like statistics!

This is interesting

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/24/genetic-immune-defects-may-impair-ability-fight-covid-19?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Nothing concrete in terms of treatment yet, but a breakthrough in understanding how the body reacts and why the difference in outcomes.

‘Cambridge are in the very early stages of trialing a vaccine which would protect against most coronaviruses, so would protect against future mutations. It does not need cold storage and can be given by needle-free injection, so is an exciting proposition. ‘

Does that mean it would protect against a proportion of common colds too? As I understand it not all are coronaviruses but some are.

@Ellsbells12

Omg how much more can we all take vaccine hurry up 😬

Yep, my arm is out waiting