Vaccinations against the new coronavirus will begin most probably in February and be completed at the beginning of the summer, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the Medical School of the University of Cyprus Nikolas Dietis has told CNA.

“Based on the information we have, I estimate that vaccinations will start around February, but they will not be vaccinations for the general population,” he said.

Dr. Dietis pointed out that vaccinations depend on what kind of approval the vaccine company will get from the European Medicines Agency, whether it will be for specific population needs or for use for the general population from the beginning.

He expressed the view that firstly they will proceed with vaccinations for the medical and nursing staff, the security forces, the elderly and other vulnerable groups. “Gradually, vaccinations will be given to the general population”, he added.

Regarding the vaccines, he said that  the European Union has made the agreement for Cyprus. “In the beginning, we made pre-agreements before the results came out so that we could be prepared. When a vaccine is approved and it is effective, then the order agreement will be signed. We made such pre-agreements with Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, CureVac and AstraZeneca,” he said.

He noted that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have two doses each with a difference of 28 days for each person.

Dr. Dietis said that there are around 80 vaccines that are in the phase of clinical trials and noted that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are US vaccines from major companies that have completed their phase 3 clinical trials.

Apart from them, he said, there is the AstraZeneca vaccine and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, as well as 12 others that are also in the phase 3 of clinical trials.

He also said that the EU has recently reached an agreement with CureVac, a German company the vaccine of which is now in phase 3.

He explained that the common goal is to produce antibodies against the virus but the way we make our body to produce these antibodies is different saying that there are differences as regards the technology used by the companies.

Dr Dietis expressed hope that until the beginning of the new year different kinds of vaccines will be ready for use.