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06
Aug 2020
Coronavirus vaccine trial rolled out for hundreds in Harrogate
The NHS is starting to roll out a coronavirus vaccine trial with hundreds of places available for people in Harrogate.
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has launched an appeal for the trial in partnership with Harrogate NHS Foundation Trust.
The trusts are considering different locations throughout Leeds, Harrogate, and York for the trial. They are keen to use spaces like sports halls, away from hospitals.
Around 70 staff will spend three days in each location, aiming to give 250 vaccines with each person having a 90-minute consultation. The trial will start at the end of September.
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Currently, they have space for 2,250 people to trial the Imperial College London vaccine. With extra demand, the NHS could increase that to 6,000.
If the trials are successful then the vaccine could be offered to everyone in the country as early as next year.
To register interest in the vaccine trial visit the NHS vaccine research website by clicking or tapping here.
Julian Hartley, Chief Executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said:
How close are we to a working vaccine?
The National Institute for Health Research has backed two coronavirus vaccines. Imperial College London is running one and the University of Oxford is running the other.
Imperial College London's vaccine's preclinical studies have shown that it helps to produce specific antibodies which fight coronavirus. Mice in the trial were able to neutralise the virus with the help of the vaccine - a positive sign for the battle against covid-19.
The government has pumped more than £40 million into the college's vaccine development and that fund has been supplemented by £5 million in donations.
How does a vaccine study work?
The NHS may give those who have signed up for the trial a vaccine or a placebo. Either way, participants will need to visit the research site a few times over the next six to 12 months.
At each of those visits, the staff will talk about the research study, take blood tests and answer any questions.
Between visits, participants will need to tell staff about any symptoms and may need to take a throat or nose swab every week while keeping a diary.
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