A combination vaccine that targets both COVID-19 and influenza did well in a phase 3 clinical trial, Moderna said on June 10. Participants who received the combination shot had at least the same level of immune response as comparison cohorts, according to the Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company, which produced one of the most widely used COVID-19 vaccines in the world. The trial compared the immune responses in adults aged 50 and older who received the combination vaccine with the responses in adults in the same age range who received an influenza vaccine and Moderna’s COVID-19 shot.
Adults aged 65 and older in the comparison group received an enhanced flu vaccine. The responses in trial participants who received one dose of the combination shot “were found to be non-inferior versus the co-administered, routinely recommended, licensed comparators,” Moderna said in a statement. The results from the phase 3, randomized, partial blind trial have not been peer reviewed or published for public review.
Moderna said it planned to present the data at an unnamed upcoming medical conference and submit it for publication in a journal. Moderna, Pfizer, and Novavax, which currently make the three COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States, have been moving toward combination vaccines in the hope they will boost flagging vaccination numbers as fewer people opt to take influenza and COVID-19 shots. “Combination vaccines have the potential to reduce the burden of respira.