Pfizer on October 26 said that its two-in-one vaccine for Covid-19 and flu will enter the final-stage trial soon after its early to mid-stage study showed positive results. The development has helped the biopharmaceutical company and its German partner BioNTech come a step closer to potentially getting regulatory approval for the combination shot.
The companies carried out initial trials among healthy adults, aged 18 to 64, who showed robust immune responses against influenza A, influenza B and Sars-CoV-2 strains after receiving the combined shot. Trial participants were compared with those administered a licensed influenza vaccine and the Pfizer-BioNTech Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted bivalent Covid-19 vaccine at the same visit.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla during an investor call in October said that he believes the convenience offered by combination vaccines will “unlock a significant potential by improving the vaccination rates.”
The company is also finalising the phase-three trial of its mRNA vaccine against influenza for adults. The trial aims to evaluate the efficacy, safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of the mRNA influenza vaccine. A benefit of the mRNA technology is that it allows the concept of combination (with other vaccines), helping one target different viruses in a single injection with mRNA, such as influenza.
