COVID-19: Closer to the end than the beginning?

There are encouraging signs from research into prevention and treatments. This week, we reported early trial results for the ‘Oxford vaccine’, ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, that may become available as early as this winter. The UK government has placed an order for 100 million doses.

There is also evidence that zinc has a role to play in prevention, and existing drugs that reduce mortality have been added to the treatment stack.

Meanwhile, while we’re all in this together, sadly not all of us are equally affected. Our investigations into health inequities continued throughout July with reports on COVID-19-related discrimination and a study on the disproportionate effects of race and ethnicity on the severity of COVID-19.

We’re also looking ahead, in this Special Feature on how life might look ‘post lockdown’, with contributions from people around the world.

So, while we’re not through the crisis yet, and authorities as far apart as the WHO and President Trump say that it’s likely to get worse before it gets better, there are signs of hope: new vaccines are showing promising early results and old ones are being repurposed to positive effects. Could this month mark the beginning of the end for the pandemic? Let’s venture a cautious yes.

Dr Andrzej Jędrzej Samosiuk