On Nov. 19, 2020, the University of Oxford announced that the ChAdOx1 nCov-2019 coronavirus vaccine had been shown to trigger a robust immune response in healthy adults aged 56-69 and those over 70 years of age. The data. published in The Lancet, suggest that one of the groups most vulnerable to serious illness, and death from COVID-19, could build immunity.

Older adults have been shown to be at higher risk from COVID-19 and should be considered to be a priority for immunisation should any effective vaccine be developed for the disease. Reporting on data from a Phase II trial of the ChAdOx1 nCov-2019 vaccine, the authors write that volunteers in the trial demonstrate similar neutralising antibody titres, and T cell responses across all three age groups (18-55, 56-79, and 70+).

During the Phase 2 trial the vaccine has been evaluated in 560 healthy adult volunteers aged between 18-55 years, 56-69 years and aged 70 or over. Volunteers received 2 doses of the vaccine ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, or a placebo MenACWY vaccine. No serious adverse health events related to ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 were seen in these volunteers.

These data are consistent with the Phase I data reported for healthy adults aged 18-55 early this year.