On March 11, the COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson was granted Emergency Use Authorisation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). This is the fourth corona vaccine to receive approval by the EMA, after Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca. Importantly, it is the first single-dose vaccine, significantly simplifying the logistics of mass vaccination and increasing the speed of rollout.
This is a great milestone in the fight against COVID-19, and we are extremely proud to have played a part in reaching it. Together with the Leiden University Medical Center, we are participating in the phase 2 trials of Janssen's vaccine project, which started in September 2020. The aim of the trials is to determine the most effective vaccination schedule and the optimum dose needed to generate an immune response. The phase 2 trials include 550 participants across three countries, 45 of whom CHDR and LUMC are responsible for. Within a month from starting recruitment, our team managed to administer the first vaccination to all 45 participants. The participants are now intensively monitored until 12 months after the second vaccination.
We are very proud of all of our employees who have worked very hard to carry out this trial quickly, but carefully, and are pleased to have been able to contribute to a vaccine project that now means so much to the world.
