A coronavirus vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca is set to be ready for use "shortly" after trial data released today shows it to be 70.4% effective in stopping disease.
The new findings are based on the results of a Phase 3 trial, including 11,636 volunteers in the UK and Brazil. Professor Sarah Gilbert, one of the leading scientists who developed the jab, said: "We hope that this vaccine will shortly be in use to start saving lives." But it is likely to be less effective than the Pfizer jab because there are doubts that it is 90% effective.
The Oxford vaccine being manufactured by AstraZeneca has been hit by concerns about its 90% result after it emerged this dosing regime was only tested on participants aged