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Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

bbc.com

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Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#561

Post by hashmush »

tome wrote: post #269
mns wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because the entire subject is so politicised and polarised that even daring to ask a question that might go against the current might get you labeled as a right wing science denier racist (based on the country, different labels might apply). Edit: it's funny that the comment above gets downvoted just for asking a question. Great world we live in. We didn't learn anything from the past. Blaming and shaming gay people…

3 in 4, according to a sister comment https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25274255

To expand a bit on that comment, 46% said that they would take the vaccine while 26% said that they wouldn't. The numbers in August were 36% and 37% respectively.

Source: https://www.svt.se/nyheter/snabbkollen/novus-fler-vill-ta-co...

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#563

Post by ericb »

partyboat1586 wrote: post #552
JamisonM wrote: post #518

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For me personally the unknowns of such a new virus mean that the existence of the case studies would be enough to be concerned. And the strongest case is made by the fact that this virus' closest relative known to infect humans has caused lasting damage to people with cases that lead to hospitalization: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02598-6 "Evidence from people infected with other coronaviruses suggests…

It's important to remember that SARS was a lot more deadly that COVID-19. I am not at all surprised such a high percentage of people suffered long term lung damage given how virulent it was. Case fatality was somewhere around 10%.

I'm curious if there was widespread serology testing to get to that number with the original SARS. That's in the ballpark of what the early SARS-COV-2 research (15%) showed until we realized there were asymptomatics and people who don't go to the hospital (because they aren't severe) and that numbers drawn from the hospitalized were not representative. If that number was just pulled from hospitalizations because we shut SARS down before we studied it as closely, it makes me wonder if the mortality rates are similar.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#564

Post by OnlyMortal »

elif wrote: post #547
annadane wrote: post #538

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm 99% certain the person you're replying to is kidding. I thought it was funny

That's his point. A decade ago, the comments on this site were 99% relevent, solid technical feedback and analysis. The top post being layperson speculation with a joke response topping it bears a much stronger resemblance to reddit than to hn's origin.

Do you remember Slashdot? Maybe Ars Technica, before it sold out?

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#565

Post by _fizz_buzz_ »

Slartie wrote: post #363
Slartie wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Generally approval of this is fast-tracked everywhere, but the UK being first is a political marketing stunt in my opinion. The UK government is in dire need to demonstrate positive aspects of leaving the EU, and being able to independently greenlight this vaccine first is one particularly well suited for PR. The Brits love their NHS system and healthcare in general, so hitting it home on that turf resonates with the…

To all the downvoters: they even openly kind-of-admit it, I've now got proof from the mouth of Matt Hancock, UK health secretary: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/02/hancock-brexit... Money Quote: "...because of Brexit we’ve been able to make a decision to do this based on the UK regulator, a world-class regulator, and not go at the pace of the Europeans, who are moving a little bit more slowly."

The EU already clarified that each member state is free to grant emergency approvals. So the UK could have done what they did while inside the EU.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#566

Post by akiselev »

gr2zr4 wrote: post #75

This could be the fastes approval in the whole drugs' history considering that The assessment of a marketing authorisation application for a new medicine takes up to 210 ‘active’ days. This active evaluation time is the time spent by EMA experts to evaluate the evidence provided by the applicant in support of a marketing authorisation application. This time is interrupted by one or two ‘clock-stops’ during which the…

> This could be the fastes approval in the whole drugs' history considering that

Without a doubt. The closest competitors would be imatinib (3 years) and several other chemotherapy drugs (~5 years) meant to treat malignant tumors. The vast majority of the drugs approved this quickly, with the exception of the HepC treatment, treated diseases with a life expectancy of less than the time it took to approve the drugs so long term side effects was less of a concern.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#568

Post by throwaway_pdp09 »

djsumdog wrote: post #539
vkou wrote: post #500

Earlier quoted context omitted.

60,000 people have already died of COVID in the UK, and many more are scheduled to, without vaccination. Hard to walk or smile when you're dead.

The vast majority of people under 50 who catch CoV2 recovery completely with minimal symptoms. There is a trade-off and people need to be able to evaluate those risk and make those decision individually.

What is a 'vast majority', please post actual figures.

> and make those decision individually

if you can somehow ensure people who get sick can't spread it, sure it's down to the individual, but it's a society-level problem. That's what "infectious" means.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#569

Post by imesh »

rrss wrote: post #523
djsumdog wrote: post #493

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure that will make those 5,000 who have trouble walking or smiling feel so much better.

Worth noting that COVID-19 probably triggers GBS in some people (like many infections). So maybe the vaccine triggers GBS in rare cases, but the disease appears to also sometimes cause long term problems (neurological and otherwise). 1976 was potentially problematic because there was a massive immunization program because of fears of a pandemic, but H1N1 was not actually spreading. 2020 is obviously a different story…

As someone who had GBS and was put into a coma at 16. I'm very uneasy about the vaccine, but I also don't want COVID. I'm likely going to end up taking the vaccine as soon as it's available and hoping GBS doesn't happen again, just so I can go back to my life ASAP. Depends on how the risk of GBS with the vaccine compares with the risk of GBS from COVID.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#570

Post by macintux »

nkohari wrote: post #542
macintux wrote: post #394

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> ...I don't see the problem with letting everyone else make their own decision. Pandemics have, since time immemorial, been an exception to the "I can do what I want" rule. Much like allowing parents to fall into conspiracy theory traps and refuse to allow their children to be vaccinated against measles, resulting in that disease suddenly becoming a threat again, if we're going to get back to normalcy we can't let h…

If there is an effective vaccine which is readily available to anyone, there is no need for lockdowns.

People who don’t use the vaccine and get sick still have an impact on healthcare systems.

People who do take the vaccine are likely still able to spread the virus.

The pandemic is not going to go quietly any time soon.

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