LONDON (Reuters) – Late-stage data unveiled on Thursday showed GSK’s respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine was 82.6% effective in a keenly-watched late-stage study involving older adults.
RSV is a leading cause of pneumonia in toddlers and the elderly, but the complex molecular structure of the virus and safety concerns have stymied efforts to develop a vaccine since the virus was first discovered in 1956.
“These are truly exceptional results given that today RSV remains one of the major infectious diseases without a vaccine, despite over 60 years of research,” said Tony Wood, GSK Chief Scientific Officer, in a statement.
GSK had said in June the trial had yielded statistically significant results for the shot, but on Thursday gave details about the performance of the vaccine.
(Reporting by Natalie Grover; Editing by Mark Potter)
