New call for volunteers in North West London for COVID-19 vaccine booster study
A COVID-19 vaccine booster study running in North West London is now recruiting its second group of volunteers, after successfully recruiting to the first part of the trial.
There are two recruiting sites locally — Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow (part of London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust) and The Good Practice in Chelsea. Participants will receive a ‘booster’ vaccine to tackle COVID-19 infections, as part of an ongoing clinical study, run by the pharmaceutical company Sanofi with the COVID-19 vaccine they are developing in partnership with GSK.
The study — supported locally by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) North West London — is examining the extent to which a single booster injection safely creates a broad immune response against the different COVID-19 variants, in participants who have previously been fully vaccinated with an authorised COVID-19 vaccine.
Participants will be asked to attend a minimum of six study visits, and their health will be monitored for 12 months. Those interested in volunteering for the trial can find out more by visiting the study website.
The study is open to adults aged 18-years-old and above, with participants enrolled across two groups (or cohorts), who have previously been vaccinated against COVID-19. A broad range of people may be included, from those who are healthy to those with health problems that put them at risk for complications due to COVID-19.
Those involved may contribute to the development of an additional vaccine that works for the good of global public health. Initial data from the study are expected to be available in quarter 4 of 2021.
A proportion of potential participants have been identified through the NHS COVID-19 Vaccine Research Registry, which currently has over 515,000 people signed up. To register interest in vaccine studies and sign up to be contacted by researchers, people can visit the NHS COVID-19 Vaccine Research Registry.
"I’m proud we are delivering this important study and giving local people the opportunity to take part."
Dr Ashley Whittington, Principal Investigator of the trial at Northwick Park Hospital, said:
"Volunteers in our region have already played a major role in helping us find vaccines that work for COVID-19.
"Testing booster vaccines is the next step we need to take to protect as many people as possible as we adapt to living with COVID-19. I’m proud we are delivering this important study and giving local people the opportunity to take part."
Jan du Plessis, Practice Manager and Research Coordinator at The Good Practice in Chelsea, said:
"We've already achieved so much in developing our understanding of COVID-19. But there is still much more we need to explore so it's vital this research continues.
"It's great we can offer local people the opportunity to take part in this study at The Good Practice. We will be promoting the study within Brompton Health PCN. The booster studies are an important next step and I'm pleased our community will be a part of it."
Professor Adam Finn, Chief Investigator for the study said:
"Throughout the pandemic we have seen excellent engagement and participation from the public within multiple pivotal vaccine studies. By examining the safety and effectiveness of the booster vaccine from Sanofi, it’s hoped researchers and participants can help add another option to our current portfolio of vaccines.
"Booster vaccines from different suppliers will give us a broader range of vaccines and help us to reinforce supply as we look to boost immunity in the population going forward, as needed."
Professor Andrew Ustianowski, National Clinical Lead for the UK NIHR COVID Vaccine Research Programme, said:
"In addition to the several other COVID-19 vaccine studies running across the UK, this latest booster study from Sanofi will help inform future vaccine plans across the UK and beyond.
"As more of the population become fully vaccinated, research and studies such as this continue to strengthen our understanding of how we can help protect everyone against coronavirus moving forward."
Find out more and sign-up to the study.
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