Source: Bloomberg
- One-dose shot’s efficacy falls between other Chinese vaccines
- China firms report efficacy rates below Western, Russia rivals
CanSino Biologics Inc.’s experimental coronavirus shot has an efficacy rate of 65.7% at preventing symptomatic cases based on an analysis from late-stage trials, making it the latest vaccine candidate to show some protection against Covid-19.
The shot co-developed by the Chinese military and the Tianjin-based biotech company proved effective against symptomatic Covid-19, based on a multi-country analysis first posted on Twitter by Faisal Sultan, Pakistan’s health adviser, on Monday. CanSino later forwarded Sultan’s announcement in a statement. The final stage trail included 30,000 participants and was also 90.98% effective in preventing severe disease, Sultan said. A vaccine needs to afford at least a 50% protection rate to be considered effective, as mandated by the world’s leading drug regulators and the World Health Organization.
The protection reading achieved from a single dose of the Chinese company’s vaccine falls between other candidates from the country. The shot developed by the state-owned China National Biotec Group Co., a unit of Sinopharm, was shown to be 78% effective, while one from Sinovac Biotech Ltd. had a 50.38% rate in a trial involving high-risk medical workers.
Among Western rivals, the Chinese vaccines have lagged behind the the shots from Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc., which have shown a protection rate of about 95%. Meanwhile, Russia’s Sputnik V showed efficacy of 91.6%. Trials for AstraZeneca Plc’s vaccine resulted in an average of 70% from two different dosing regimes.
Categories: Vaccine