Random vaccine trial question

[OpheliasCrayon]

Random question for a Tuesday morning.

If you were part of the vaccine trials do you know if you have the actual vaccine or the placebo (or the meningitis B vaccine - maybe I'm wrong but didn't they use that so people wouldn't know which they had as that one causes similar side effects?)

So now the vaccine has been rolled out if you are in the trials would you currently not know if you've already had it and would you just have to get it along with everyone else ?

I’m in the trial for the novavax and 50% of us have had it. Can’t speak for other trials but we’ve been told that when we get invited for a jab in the normal way we ring them up and they “unblind” us and advise us to get it- or not. It might be safe for us to have whatever we are offered as well as novavax, that is not yet decided.

You don't know whilst the trial is ongoing. The end point will have been set out in the trial design.

Usually, if the drug or vaccine being trialled is found to be effective and safe, these who were on the trial in the placebo group get rapid priority access once the 'blinding' is removed.

If it is an expensive cancer drug for example which might not get NICE funding for a protracted time, it is also normal for trial participants to continue to be supplied by the company until necessary approvals are made

You wouldn't know at the time, but they're likely to "unblind" at the end of the trial or when you're offered another vaccine so you'd find out then. www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/oxford-set-tell-vaccine-trial-volunteers-got-placebo-offered/

@Minimonkeysmum
@scaevola
This isn’t true for novavax which recruited 15,000 in the UK.

@Frazzled2207 - I think I've just said exactly what you said? It'll either be at the end of the trial or at the point you're offered another vaccine.

Thanks for the info! I've been in a drug trial years ago but had to stop as I was unwell . I was told the it had been the real thing but I couldn't have anymore which was upsetting as it had worked. Drug never got approved though

@OpheliasCrayon
As to your second question yes I heard that some trial volunteers got a meningitis vax but for ours it was just saline-
I had no side effects at all so I imagine it was the placebo

@Minimonkeysmum
Yes fair point, apologies