Cuban formulas were already being administered in countries allied to Havana such as Venezuela, Iran and Nicaragua.
Cuba seeks the approval of the World Health Organization (WHO) for its three vaccines against covid, which could mean a economic accolade, scientist and politician for Havana at its most delicate moment in decades.
The recent authorization for emergency use in Mexico of the Abdala formula represents a step forward in this regard, but a decision by the WHO seems still distant, judging by the stage of the validation processes.
“The process is guided by science and not politics And it is necessarily expensive, but the system works. Wherever assessments and inspections have not been carried out following international requirements and standards, the WHO carries out the entire spectrum of actions, ”WHO sources told Efe.
According to the latest status update of the vaccine evaluation process Against the covid-19 of this multilateral organization, on December 23, the WHO is “waiting for information on the strategy and schedule for sending” documentation from Cuba.
This public document also indicates that the meeting prior to sending the information between Cuban producers and WHO representatives has not yet taken place, and that the information has not yet been accepted for review.
The WHO explained to Efe that the process “usually takes two to three months to complete“, Depending on” the quality and availability of the data provided by the manufacturers, among other factors. “
However, it underlines that the review is an “open process with no end date”, that is, it does not have a fixed duration nor does it have to end with an authorization for the vaccine candidate.
Cuba will use Chinese vaccine, in addition to its own, against the coronavirus
The final green light is granted “if, in light of WHO standards” the data “demonstrate a reasonable probability” of “the quality, safety and effectiveness of the vaccine”And that the benefits outweigh its“ possible risks and uncertainties ”.
The vaccination guidelines of Abdala, Soberana 02 and Soberana Plus are effective greater than 90%, according to its manufacturers, but these data have not been verified by external independent instances.
Nowadays ten vaccines against covid-19 Worldwide, this validation process has been successfully completed by WHO (including Pzifer / BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Janssen, Sinovac and Novavax).
In Cuba, the experimental vaccine Abdala goes to the final phase of trials
Five more candidates are awaiting the final decision of the WHO, another held two meetings prior to sending the documentation, one more recently withdrew his candidacy and the remaining three applications are in the first stage of the process, including the Cuban.
The president of the state group of the Cuban biopharmaceutical industry (BioCubaFarma), Eduardo Martínez Díaz, recently pointed this out on Twitter when he explained that they were “Adapting the documentation to be sent to the WHO”. “Progress depends on us,” he said.
His comments on the social network, where he emphasized that the Cuban vaccines are “very effective” and that other countries could use them, followed several days of criticism in the official Cuban media of the WHO because the national formulas did not yet have authorization. (I)
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