Is the Oxford vaccine the one to change the world?

[notangelinajolie]

Not only is the cost the same as the price of a cup of coffee, no freezers are required and it also seems to prevent asymptomatic infection.

Under £3 a dose and not for profit.
Pfizer £15
Moderna £28

Apart from the usual suspects who will no doubt find something negative about today's news is anyone else feeling proud to be from the UK?
Well done Oxford. And well done all those people in the UK and Brazil who volunteered to take part in the trials.

Well that’s a bit concerning isn’t it? Do you think being BAME absolve you of xenophobia?

We should be proud of the U.K. efforts ‘which includes people with diverse ethnic backgrounds’. Do you think the statement needs a qualifying sentence on the background on those working on the Oxford AZ vaccine?

Are you not proud of the U.K. in this instance?

I really hope so and think it could be

@OpheliasCrayon

Do you think that the people working on it were exclusively from the UK , OP?

This is a world wide effort-I'd leave your xenophobic comments at the door until you've checked the ethnicity of all the people working on the oxford vaccine

Don't rise to it OP - there's always one rent-a-ranter doing the rounds.

I hope so.
They worked around the clock to find a solution and it is much cheaper than the others. Well done Oxford!

Christ Almighty, sone folk will argue in an empty room

Well done to the Science Boffins that developed this vaccine. I don't know who you are, I care less about your ethnicity, I am just bloody thankful for you

It uses a live attenuated carrier virus, which might mean it is contraindicated for more people (as other live vaccines already are)

But that won't make any difference for the majority, and leaves the more expensive mRNA jab for those who need a 'dead' one

(Assuming, of course, that both types are proved to be safe for those with pre-existing conditions)

@AgnesNaismith

Well that’s a bit concerning isn’t it? Do you think being BAME absolve you of xenophobia?

We should be proud of the U.K. efforts ‘which includes people with diverse ethnic backgrounds’. Do you think the statement needs a qualifying sentence on the background on those working on the Oxford AZ vaccine?

Are you not proud of the U.K. in this instance?

Im not proud of the UK no. I'm proud of every single scientist involved whereever they're from.

It looks like this one is actually going to be the game changer as it can be rolled out across middle income countries rapidly. It still may require financial backing for the poorest countries but its affordable for the majority which makes such a difference

Don't rise to it OP - there's always one rent-a-ranter doing the rounds

Good advice, because that leads to messy derailment.

But do think about why the comment was needed on the first place, and think about what you say (or rather post here on MN which is global written publication)

@MoiraRoseismyStyleIcon

Apparently it was actually an error that led to half the volunteers being given this regime in the first place

. Crikey, that doesn't instill confidence!

Look up the story of how penicillin was discovered. Serendipity - a happy accident - has an honourable place in medical history.

Yes well done U.K.! And it is true to say the nurses and scientists are a diverse bunch of Brits, I am on the trial and have had lovely chats with a British Ugandan nurse, a British Filipino nurse, a Hungarian nurse. Lots of nurses were redeployed to help with the trial plus loads of delightful young junior doctors, many on their first placements and enjoying the experience. In fact, I would say they were all amazing and very upbeat. I am going in tomorrow for more blood tests and looking forward to congratulating them all

One of them, yes. China is shipping its vaccine to Turkey but still seems to be in phase 3 trials.

Being cheap, reliable and produced in vast quantities are the things that will change the world. Chinese products dont always have the best reputation for reliability. The Russian vaccine may be a pirate copy of the Oxford vaccine. Other vaccines will take longer to produce in the quantities required.

I'm proud that our health service is organised in such a way that we were the first to discover a cheap and effective treatment. I'm proud that people from around the world want to come here to work with our home grown scientists because our universites have great reputations.

I have no idea of the nationality of the vaccine teams round the world, nor of their ethnicity - and would not think to ask. They will be teams and the uk one probably diverse.

I will care if the initial idea was from a woman and a male takes credit for it, perhaps I should look at the make up of the team who created it.

It's absolutely bloody brilliant news. I'm proud of humanity, proud of women, and yes I am proud of the UK for this frankly incredible achievement.

What made things harder for the pandemic (international hub) became a benefit as we attract expertise. I feel proud of everything that made that possible - the universities and the people in them.

Waves at sashagabadon

Hello fellow trial participant! I had my bloods done on Saturday. I love the fact that the place is a knackered NHS office building, it doesn't feel like we are at the epicentre of globally significant research

Yes

Errors are often important moments of discovery. A good scientist would be curious about the results of an error and investigate it further. This is what Fleming did with his mouldy Petri dish rather than just bin it the result of his curiosity was Penicillin

Great news and a success for international cooperation, no particular reason to feel proud of the UK - i feel ashamed that we have one of the highest death rates in the world!
Scientists a mix of UK and EU scientists, trials around the world, latest in US and Japan, main funding and production from AstraZeneca, a UK/Swedish company.

I think I read the half doses were given in error (and later proved 90% effective) but the sample of people used in that particular (accidental) trial was too small for them to use that data.
(I hope I've interpreted/explained that properly, I'm not a science person)
I'm hugely grateful to all scientists working on vaccines, it's a collective effort, although I feel pleased that a woman heads up the Oxford trial and it was husband and wife for the Pfizer one, I believe.
Maybe one of them could be nominated to be on the new £50 note when they make the polymer ones....? or does it have to be someone from history who has died?

Hi Surburban

There is clearly more work to be done to sort out the optimal dosing, but the fact that the Oxford AZ vaccine is highly effective and very safe and cheap and can be produced at massive scale using existing processes and can be distributed & stored at normal fridge temperatures indicates that it can be used to vaccine the entire world against Covid-19.

Well done to the amazing 🇬🇧 scientists!

MoiraRoseismyStyleIcon
It does instil confidence that they picked up a mistake. It means under guidelines they have to check, and recheck EVERYTHING that’s been done. I’ll b in the queue for a jab.

Bore on Ophelia....

Don't rise to it OP - there's always one rent-a-ranter doing the rounds

I like that, I'm stealing

British science is AMAZING. And while yes, the scientists come from all over the world, they come here for a reason. Our funding structures, support systems, universities have been carefully nurtured over many years to support cutting edge science, encourage innovation and create a culture which allows scientists to prioritise affordability and world-wide usefulness over profit. This particular vaccine would never have been created in the US science economy.

Just like our NHS, this infrastructure is under threat from the current Government. If you are proud of what scientists have done, working in the science infrastructure that this country has created, please remember this next time you vote.