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“Vaccine crisis theory? Why is this the media… It is more important to secure various vaccines”


Professor Ki Moran, National Cancer Center (Chairman of the Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
Ⓒ Kwon Woo-seong

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As the number of new confirmed cases per day reaches 1,000, the demand for’vaccine vaccination’ is increasing in Korea. Pfizer vaccination has already begun in the US, Canada, and the UK, and 27 EU countries plan to do so within this month. On the other hand, Korea has only secured quantities of Pfizer, Moder, and vaccines that were urgently approved by the US FDA and has not signed a formal contract. The only formally contracted AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine has not yet completed phase 3 clinical trials.

Some point out on the amount of vaccine secured. It is pointed out that while foreign countries have secured several times the amount of the population, the total amount of vaccines secured so far in Korea amounted to 44 million people, which is not enough to inoculate the entire population.

But on the 21st Kim Mo-ran, a professor at the National Cancer Center (Chairman of the Korean Society for Preventive Medicine), who spoke on the phone with a phone call, disagreed. Even if the vaccine was given first, it cannot be said that the’collective immunity’ reaches faster, and the currently vaccinated Pfizer vaccine is difficult to transport or store, so the’inoculation rate’ is inevitably slow.

In addition, considering that children and adolescents are not subject to clinical trials and cannot be vaccinated, the amount of 44 million people is not a small amount, but rather, it is important to plan for vaccination well in the future and focus on securing various types of vaccines in case. Emphasized.

In particular, Professor Ki pointed out that some media are’criticizing for criticism’. Vaccine contracts are highly uncertain, so in a situation where it is necessary to discuss the timing, quantity, and whereabouts of responsibility, etc., the media continues to raise issues, and the government makes the contract defensively.

The following is a summary of the questions and answers shared with Professor Ki.

“Even if you start vaccination quickly, it doesn’t mean you become a group immunity.”

The government has signed a vaccine contract with AstraZeneca, a vaccine developer for a novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19).
Ⓒ Yonhap News

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-There are many criticisms that the government’s vaccine acquisition was late.

“It’s true that it’s later than the United States and the United Kingdom. But I think it’s good to start early. I have to see it until the end. Now, the media talks about group immunity by vaccination. The country that started first is talking about group immunity first. It is not.

-Does it mean that the timing of inoculation is not important?

“The Pfizer vaccine started vaccination first, but the vaccination rate cannot be increased quickly because transportation, storage and vaccination are difficult. If 100,000 people are hit a day, it takes 7 months to hit 10 million people in Korea. On the other hand, the effectiveness of vaccination is 6 It’s months, and if you get vaccinated first, you’ll be able to achieve group immunity soon, but you don’t know what will happen between vaccinations.

And Corona 19 cannot be ended with a vaccine. Just like getting the flu vaccine doesn’t go away. Some groups don’t get vaccinated, the timing is different, and the effect doesn’t last long. Nevertheless, vaccination is necessary to prevent death in high-risk groups. The number of these people is about 10 million, including the elderly over 65 years old, workers at organizations caring for them, and medical staff. Already, this is the amount secured by Cobax Facility (Vaccine Purchasing Association). If the high-risk group does not become infected, the number of deaths decreases, and the burden of medical personnel is reduced, even if Corona 19 returns, it will be possible to withstand the flu-like problem.

-Many people have doubts about the AstraZeneca vaccine secured by Korea.

“AstraZeneca was the first to start phase 3 clinical trials, but Pfizer or Modena first received (US FDA) approval due to a mistake in the clinical design. However, AstraZeneca can be vaccinated quickly. In the case of AstraZeneca, 500,000 vaccinations per day are possible at medical institutions nationwide. I think it will be possible to inoculate people, so it can be done five times faster than Pfizer.

When the AstraZeneca vaccine comes in, it will speed up the vaccination. There is no reason for the media to blame the government for being too quick to “why not bring in vaccines right now?” Rather, if the government is in a hurry to introduce an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer Modena) that we haven’t used, the media should say,’You have to be careful,’ but it seems to be the reverse.

No vaccine or treatment is 100% safe and effective. It is to take a certain risk, and even if the risk is high, if the influence of the disease is large, like Corona 19, it is to take it. It should be taken into account that the current situation in the United States or the United Kingdom and Korea is very different.”

“It’s more important to have a good vaccination plan”

  Professor Ki Moran, National Cancer Center (Chairman of the Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
Professor Ki Moran, National Cancer Center (Chairman of the Korean Society for Preventive Medicine)
Ⓒ Kwon Woo-seong

View related photos

-Do you think that the amount of 44 million people secured by the government is small?

“Children and adolescents were not subject to vaccine clinical trials. Since it is intended for adults, it means that a vaccine for the whole country was secured in 44 million minutes. Since we are not sure which vaccine will be targeted for children and adolescents, vaccines on various platforms I think it is more important to secure the situation. Also, since it is not possible to continue to buy and use vaccines from abroad, it is necessary to make a domestic vaccine by supporting clinical and research support in Korea as in the case of NovaVax.”

-What should the Korean government do at this point?

“The goal of vaccination is to reduce deaths. We need to find a way to effectively vaccinate people who will be vaccinated. Also, we don’t know what kind of vaccine Kovax will give before March. Pfizer in countries that don’t have a cold chain. We can’t give you a vaccine, so if Pfizer comes to Korea early, you need to plan a good scenario for how to get it.

Only the clinical trial is over, is the site different? You can’t wait for foreign data on vaccination, and you have to look closely at the vaccination effect or side effects. For some people, it works well and for others, it is necessary to consider how to prepare the analysis data.

Guidance of vaccinations to medical personnel is also important. If anaphylactic shock occurs, epinephyrin should be prepared and prescribed, which should also be reviewed and prepared internally. It is difficult to see that if you simply sign a vaccine quickly, it will be all-out.”

-Do you think there is a problem with the’vaccine crisis theory’ presented by the media?

“The press is criticizing for criticism.’Why not signing?’ and’Isn’t it right?’ It’s not talking about prudence, but rather pushing, so the government has no choice but to sign a contract defensively. It is driven by.

Vaccines are different from other contracts. Because of the high uncertainty, the issue of responsibility is important, and various conditions such as timing and quantity issues must be considered. However, in a situation where all of the nation’s supplies are secured, they continue to argue that’we have not secured’, and say’Korea is a backward country’ and'(foreign countries) ended, but we only looked at it’.

One media outlet picked up the title differently even though it reported that Japan and Korea were starting vaccinations similarly. In Korea, Astrogenekawa and Pfizer applied for a preliminary review before applying for permission to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Vaccination can be achieved if the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety reviews and quickly approves the use. The contract is finally made. Hurrying doesn’t mean better vaccines come in quickly. I don’t know why the press is so rushing.”

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