{"id":2924,"date":"2020-07-22T11:15:33","date_gmt":"2020-07-22T10:15:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-medicine\/?p=2924"},"modified":"2020-09-22T15:48:50","modified_gmt":"2020-09-22T14:48:50","slug":"covid-19-vaccine-diaries-part-one-my-first-dose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/imperial-medicine\/2020\/07\/22\/covid-19-vaccine-diaries-part-one-my-first-dose\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19 vaccine diaries: part one, my first dose"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Justine is taking part in Imperial\u2019s COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial \u2013 here she shares her experience of receiving the first dose.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

It\u2019s a strange feeling that as I write this, the cells in my arm are reading a message that scientists planted there just hours ago.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That message – a strip of genetic code – contains the recipe for making part of the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2. This is the \u2018spike\u2019 protein that the virus uses to lock on to cells and invade them. The hope is that by telling my cells to churn out this molecule, my immune system will launch an effective and lasting response that could make me immune to the coronavirus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the theory, anyway; we won\u2019t know whether this experimental vaccine works until scientists have carried out rigorous clinical studies and gathered enough data to be confident of how safe and effective it is. And today I was part of that clinical research.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m one of 120 people who have so far been selected to take part in one of the earliest phases of a clinical trial that\u2019s testing Imperial\u2019s newly-developed coronavirus vaccine. As soon as I spotted that the trial was recruiting participants, I immediately slotted my details into the online form to express my interest in joining, and eagerly awaited a response. <\/span><\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t long before I received a reply that I might be eligible, and that I\u2019d need to come for a screening session to find out. Within a week I was at the research facility, running through what seemed like endless forms to find out details of my medical history. As the research is at such an early stage, they\u2019re very strict with who can join and want to make sure that participants are fit and healthy, and not pregnant in case there are any risks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After racking my brains to remember details of the operation I had as a youngster to fix my broken arm, I was given a pregnancy test, a few prods and pokes, and had a handful of blood samples taken for a battery of tests. I was told that if I\u2019m eligible, I\u2019ll need to come in almost every week for two months, and then a few further visits throughout the following 12 months. I couldn\u2019t help but think: Is this really worth the effort?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For me, signing up wasn\u2019t really a selfish endeavour; even if I did make it on to the trial, there\u2019s no guarantee that the vaccine would be a success. It\u2019s a very new technology, and we\u2019re still learning so much about this novel virus. But the chance to take part in ground-breaking research that could change the course of history overrode any apprehension I had. And as humans are the best way to study diseases and new treatments, medicine can\u2019t advance without trials in people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The trial has attracted international media interest<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

About a week after my screen I was excited to receive an email offering me a place on the trial. I\u2019d \u2018passed\u2019, as it were, with a full bill of health; which was reassuring! I accepted immediately and booked my place.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the day, I arrive a little dishevelled having cycled across London to get there. The clinic was quiet and straight away I was ushered by a member of the team into a large, well-lit room with a giant blue chair I was to get to know well over the next three hours. I have a strange mixture of nerves and adrenaline.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A very kind nurse gives me a few minutes to calm down before I\u2019m given another mini screen. I\u2019m told they need to do another pregnancy test and check my vital signs; if anything is awry, I wouldn\u2019t be given the vaccine. Happily, everything is fine once again.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Chief Investigator for the trial, Dr Katrina Pollock, then pops in and introduces herself. I\u2019m desperate to know which dose group I am in.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor this trial, you\u2019re going to be blinded, which means that we will know which dose you\u2019re getting, but you won\u2019t,\u201d she tells me. Dr Pollock explains that the 105 participants will be split into three groups, who will receive one of three doses that had already been tested in 15 people as part of a \u2018dose-escalation\u2019 study to find out whether people have any reactions to different amounts of the vaccine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The reason I\u2019m not allowed to find out which dose I\u2019ll be getting is so that it doesn\u2019t influence how I report I\u2019m feeling afterwards. For example, if I knew I was getting the highest dose, would I start to assume I\u2019m feeling worse?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The final step before getting vaccinated is taking blood for a suite of tests. I\u2019m not squeamish, but I begin counting the vials as the nurse prepares my arm with a tourniquet. \u201c14?!\u201d I squeak. \u201cYes, I\u2019m sorry!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

These are my baseline blood samples to compare throughout the study, I\u2019m told, looking at how my immune system and organs are functioning.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While the team prepares my dose, I\u2019m reassured that I can drop out of the trial at any point should I wish. That\u2019s not something I intend to do, as I want my results to be useful for the team. But you never know what life may throw at you, so it\u2019s good to understand that I\u2019m not obliged to continue if I can\u2019t or don\u2019t want to.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The nurse finally brings the vaccine over and I\u2019m pleased to see that both the needle, and the volume of liquid, are very small. \u201cSharp scratch\u201d and it\u2019s over; I\u2019m vaccinated. It was very undramatic.<\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/ImperialMed\/status\/1283823459051737091<\/a><\/p>\n

Dr Pollock tells me that they\u2019ll now be looking for three different things as the trial continues over the next year; how safe the vaccine is, whether my body tolerates it, and how my immune system responds to it. \u201cThe vaccine is basically a training system for your immune system, to prep it for any encounters with the coronavirus,\u201d she says. In particular, they\u2019re looking for antibodies that could thwart the virus. But they\u2019re not expecting to see much of a response until I come back for a booster shot in three weeks, when I\u2019ll be given the same dose again to help better engage my immune system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I hang around for an hour while I\u2019m kept under a watchful eye, texting my family to let them know the deed is done. And then I\u2019m free to go home, symptomless and feeling proud to have done my bit for medicine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be tracking my symptoms and how I\u2019m feeling over the following week, and the team will call to check in on me. I wish I had a portal into my cells to check out how my body is reacting to the vaccine. For now, I\u2019ll just have to wait.<\/span><\/p>\n