WVMC eyed for vaccine trials in PHL

The Western Visayas Medical Center in Iloilo City could be one of the hospitals that might be enrolled for the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Solidarity Trials of potential covid-19 vaccines next year.

Department of Science and Technology (DOST) vaccine expert panel council chairperson Dr. Nina Gloriani said in a press conference in Metro Manila that potential vaccine products that will be tested in the Philippines under the WHO-led trials will be announced this week.

 

“The vaccine or vaccines to be tested in the Philippines could be announced anytime this week of December 2020,” Gloriani was cited as saying in a GMA News Online report.

 

Gloriani said that the total number of participants is still being discussed.

 

“We are still debating whether we will have 4,000 or 15,000 participants, as requested. We may not be able to really approve the 15,000—but we will try our best—because of logistical concerns,” she said.

 

Gloriani said the initial participating sites will come from areas with high transmission of COVID-19 such as in the National Capital Region, Calabarzon and Cordillera Administrative Region.

Gloriani said the WHO Solidarity Trials in the country will prioritize the age group 18 to 59 years old, and those who belong to the COVID-19 high risk groups like healthcare workers, frontliners and contacts of infected patients.

Special groups may be added later such as elderlies who are 60 years old and above, as well as children who are immunocompromised.

 

Gloriani, who is also a member of the WHO scientific steering committee, identified 14 hospital sites that could be enrolled in the clinical trials:

 

Philippine General Hospital (lead hospital)

Research Institute of Tropical Medicine

Manila Doctor’s Hospital

San Lazaro Hospital

St. Lukes Medical Center – Quezon City

St. Lukes Medical Center  – Bonifacio Global City

Lung Center of the Philippines

The Medical City

Makati Medical Center

De La Salle Medical Center – Cavite

Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center – Cebu City

Southern Philippines Medical Center – Davao City

Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center

Western Visayas Medical Center – Iloilo City

 

Gloriani earlier said that the solidarity trial is expected to start in January 2021.

The evaluation for the primary outcomes involving the efficacy of the vaccines will take three to six months, according to Gloriani.

For the assessment on secondary outcomes such as “immune correlates of protection” and other immunological parameters and safety monitoring, the process will take 12 to 18 months.

Aside from the potential vaccine products under the WHO Solidarity Trial, five potential COVID-19 vaccines applied for possible clinical trials in the Philippines: Sinovac, Janssen, Sputnik V, Clover Biopharmaceuticals, and AstraZeneca.