This has not been shared widely in the media so let’s fix that. COVID-19 is now in retreat in the United States, the United Kingdom, AND Worldwide. Worldwide, cases have fallen MORE THAN 30% since late August and weekly deaths have fallen MORE THAN 15%. It gets better. Read on.🧵
•U.S. cases and hospitalizations have fallen 35% and 25% respectively since September 1st.
•Daily deaths in the U.S. have fallen 10% since September 20th. It is the FIRST sustained decline in deaths since the early summer.
•Deaths in the U.K. have fallen 21% since their-
September peak.
•Hospitalizations in the U.K. are down 28% since their September peak.
•The pattern has also been evident within countries, including India, Indonesia, Thailand, Britain, France, and Spain. In each of them, the Delta variant led to a surge in cases lasting-
somewhere from one and a half to two and a half months.
•In the U.S., the Delta surge started in several Southern states in June and began receding in those states in August. In much of the rest of the U.S., it began in July, and cases have begun falling the past few weeks.
•Even pediatric cases are falling, despite the lack of vaccine authorization for children under 12.
•The share of those in the U.S. 12 and over who have received at least one vaccine shot has reached 76%.
•MORE THAN 6 BILLION vaccine doses have been administered worldwide.
•Lastly, around 1/2 of those in the U.S. have probably had COVID already, giving them some natural immunity. This matters and counts.
“Eventually, immunity will become widespread enough that another wave as large and damaging as the Delta wave will not be possible.
“Barring something unexpected,” Dr. Scott Gottlieb, has stated: “I’m of the opinion that this is the LAST major wave of infection.”
“COVID isn’t going to disappear anytime soon. It will continue to circulate for years, many scientists believe. BUT the vaccines can transform
COVID into a MANAGEABLE disease, not so different from a flu or common cold. In the past few weeks, the country appears to have moved closer to that less grim future. Whatever this autumn brings, the worst of the pandemic is almost certainly behind us.”
One thing I want to add onto this thread that is circulating in the media. This particular study out of The Lancet. PLEASE NOTE: Vaccine effectiveness in preventing hospitalization and death remained high at 90% for AT LEAST (NOT ONLY) SIX MONTHS, even against the highly
contagious Delta variant. That’s from the actual study itself. Felt the need to put that out there since most headlines today have been extremely misleading. You can find that study here: thelancet.com/journals/lance….
THIS IS HUGE! An HIV PrEP drug candidate in the form of a twice-yearly subcutaneous injection has been shown to reduce HIV infections by 96% in a SECOND late-stage Phase III trial. Lenacapavir was 99.9% effective at preventing HIV in MORE THAN 2,000 participants.🧵⬇️
These results come from the PURPOSE 2 trial evaluating Gilead Sciences’ twice-yearly, subcutaneous Lenacapavir in individuals aged 16 years or older. Lenacapavir, which is a capsid inhibitor, is already approved by the FDA under the brand name Sunlenca for use alongside other
So, not COVID related BUT, this is REALLY exciting news. Phase I/II data shows Moderna’s Norovirus vaccine candidate mRNA-1403, has shown early signs of efficacy AND elicited robust serum HBGA-blocking antibody responses against ALL THREE NoV genotypes. Let’s talk about that!🧵⬇️
At IDWeek 2024, Moderna presented interim results from an ongoing Phase I/II, randomized, observer-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging trial (NCT05992935) for mRNA-1403, a prophylactic vaccine candidate under investigation for norovirus (NoV) infections.
As one of the leading causes of acute gastroenteritis worldwide, NoV is associated with a substantial healthcare burden. Symptoms include vomiting and diarrhoea, which can be severely dehydrating, and the risk of severe outcomes from NoV is greatest in young children and older
THIS IS HUGE! Researchers at JHU have developed an experimental drug called RK-33, that in preclinical studies has shown promise in treating breast cancer with bone metastases. RK-33 eliminated the metastases AND prevented further cancer spread. Let’s talk about that!🧵⬇️
In a new study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine, the drug RK-33 has demonstrated promise in treating breast cancer that has spread to the bone (breast cancer bone metastasis). RK-33 was previously shown to help treat other types of cancer and viral illnesses.
THIS IS HUGE! Researchers at Lancaster University have developed RI-AG03, a peptide inhibitor, that in preclinical studies PREVENTED the build-up of harmful Tau proteins in the brain, which are believed to be a key driver of Alzheimer’s disease. Let’s talk about that! 🧵⬇️
Tau proteins are essential for maintaining the structure and function of neurons. However, in Alzheimer’s disease, these proteins malfunction and aggregate into long, twisted fibrils. As these fibrils build up, they form neurofibrillary tangles- masses of tangled tau proteins
THIS IS HUGE! Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a vaccine against the bacterium Clostridioides difficile (C.diff), that in preclinical studies, protected against succumbing from infection AND prevented recurring cases. Let’s talk about that! 🧵⬇️
The bacterium Clostridioides difficile is named “difficult” for a reason. Originally, it was hard to grow in the lab, and, now, it’s the source of gut infections that are tough to treat. About half a million people in the U.S. contract C. diff every year, often from hospitals-
THIS IS HUGE! Scientists at the University of Oxford are developing the world's FIRST ovarian cancer vaccine that could potentially wipe the disease out. OvarianVax teaches the immune system to recognize and attack the earliest stages of ovarian cancer. Let’s talk about that!🧵⬇️
The hope is that individuals could receive the vaccine preventatively with the goal of eradicating the disease. Researchers have suggested it could work in a similar way to the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which is on track to stamp out cervical cancer.
Oxford researchers are designing OvarianVax, a vaccine which teaches the immune system to recognize and attack the earliest stages of ovarian cancer. The team will receive up to £600,000 for the study over the next three years to support lab research into the vaccine.