News has come out this morning from Johnson & Johnson of a new potential single-shot vaccine that has finished its Phase 3 trial globally.
The company's vaccine branch, Janssen, has tested doses in the United States, Latin America, and South Africa. The U.S. saw the highest effectiveness at 72%, but it protected from severe disease that could end in a hospital by up to 85%. Dr. Steve Martin, the Dean of Ohio Northern University's Raabe College of Pharmacy says a single-shot vaccine could completely change the course of the medicine's distribution.
"We would love to have a one-dose option for vaccinations. Certainly, in the U.S. that would be helpful. But, if you think about, really across the world is where that would be a much more important option," Martin explains. "Because it can be really difficult in certain countries to get people to come back for vaccinations and there just isn’t the public infrastructure to provide those.”
Seventy-two percent effectiveness may seem like a stark difference from what we've seen in Pfizer and Moderna. But Martin says it's not that uncommon when compared to the average flu shot which ranges from 50-60% protection.
“I think we were spoiled a little bit having read of high 90% efficacy with the Moderna and the Pfizer products," says Martin. "So, that’s where I think some people look at that and say ‘I’m not sure I want that.' But honestly, if all we had available was the Johnson & Johnson product that was in the mid-70s in terms of effectiveness, that would be a good product for us to use across the country.”
The Maryland-based company Novavax has also released data on their version of the vaccine, showing 89% efficacy in U.K. trials. AstraZeneca is finishing phase three of their trials as well.
