'That Sounds Really Cool': 12-Year-Old Coronavirus Vaccine Test Volunteer Cheers Breakthrough
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - Word of a successful coronavirus vaccine was welcome news for a 12-year-old Ohio boy who is volunteering as a test subject for a COVID-19 vaccine.
U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced Nov. 9 that it's vaccine candidate was more than 90 percent effective in early testing.
"That sounds really cool and I'm happy to know that I could actually be saving many lives" said Abhinav, one of at least 100 patients as young as 12 years old at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center who is volunteering as a test subject for a COVID-19 vaccine that's currently in the works at Pfizer.
Abhinav, whose parents asked that only his first name be used to protect his privacy, said he received his first dose of the trial vaccine three weeks ago.
"I got a COVID test, which is the nose swab, and then I got the blood test, and then I got the shot" he told WCPO.
About 45,000 people across the U.S. took part in the study. Some volunteers received the trial vaccine; others received a placebo.
Abhinav's father said four out of five participating children at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center received the actual vaccine.
"I'm not entirely sure if I got the placebo or the vaccine. But the shot really felt like, you know, normal, so judging by that I'm guessing I got the vaccine because generally most kids do," Abhinav said.
Dr. Robert Frenck, who is leading the trial for Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine at the hospital, said people may be nervous about giving children an experimental vaccine but noted Pfizer's has already been tested in tens of thousands of adults.
"One child developed a low-grade fever and took a dose of ibuprofen and felt fine," he told CNN.
As for Abhinav? "Currently my arm is feeling pretty good," he said.
Pfizer says it expects to have more data on the vaccine's effectiveness in late November, along with information on safety and manufacturing quality. Soon after that, it expects to apply for emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Pfizer expects to have up to 50 million doses available by the end of the year. The company says scientists will monitor participants for the next three years.
