Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said on Tuesday (7th) that although the new coronavirus variant Omicron seems to be milder than the previous virus strain, it is also more contagious and may produce more variant viruses in the future.
Bourla said that he does not think that the rapid spread of the virus is good news, and that it may be prone to new variants of the virus, which is the worst result.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief epidemic prevention expert of the United States, said a few days ago that according to a report from South Africa last weekend, Omicron is not as serious as initially worried, but still needs more information to assess the risks it poses.
The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) reported on Saturday that most of the patients infected with Omicron in the past two weeks did not need to use an oxygen machine and had milder symptoms.
However, Bourla warns that it is currently difficult to draw conclusions from the Omicron infection cases in South Africa, because only 5% of the infected cases are over 60 years old, and younger cases of infection usually have milder symptoms. He added that the high rate of HIV infection in South Africa will also lead to more severe symptomatic reactions, making it difficult to determine the actual status of the infection.
Bourla predicts that in the next few weeks, the number of Omicron infections will surge from a few dozen to millions. Therefore, it may not be possible to learn more about the clinical manifestations of the virus before the end of the year.
Bourla said that Pfizer can develop a vaccine against Omicron by March 2022, but it is not clear whether it is necessary to develop it. In the next few weeks, it will be confirmed whether the current vaccine can provide sufficient protection against the virus strain. .
In addition, Bourla is confident in the company’s Paxlovid, believing that the drug can effectively fight against variant viruses including Omicron so far.
Before the deadline, Pfizer’s (PFE-US) share price was roughly flat, slightly down 0.08%, to a temporary price of US$51.36 per share.
