Would a vaccine for the new coronavirus wind up offering long-lasting immunity? Or will the virus prove to be a shape-shifter, mutating quickly enough that people need annual vaccines like those for seasonal strains of influenza? Researchers are probing for answers in the rush to develop a vaccine for COVID-19.
In 1910, a young girl was taken to a hospital in Hamilton, Ont. with a suspected case of rabies.
It wasn’t until after her death that clinicians discovered what was actually wrong: She’d somehow contracted polio, marking the grim start of Canada’s first outbreak of the contagious viral illness, which wound up paralyzing — or killing — tens of thousands of Canadians.
In 1953 alone, the year the disease peaked, 9,000 children across the country were infected, and 500 died.
But after polio vaccines were rolled out widely that same decade, the virus quickly started to disappear. In 1994, four decades later, Canada was declared polio-free.
Could a vaccine for the new coronavirus lead to a similar outcome?
That’s the best-case scenario — but it’s far from certain.
Even amid unprecedented collaboration, with researchers around the world scrambling to develop at least one safe, successful option, there’s still lots to learn about SARS‑CoV‑2, a virus that’s been spreading among humans for only a few months.
Would a vaccine for the new coronavirus wind up offering long-lasting immunity, potentially wiping out COVID-19 across Canada? Or will the virus prove to be a shape-shifter, mutating quickly enough that people need annual vaccines like those for seasonal strains of influenza?
“We don’t yet know the answers to those questions,” says Dr. Mary Carol Jennings, a public health physician and vaccine scientist at Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health. “The answers will help us imagine what it would look like.”
Those conclusions will also shed light on whether COVID-19 could one day fade out from public consciousness — or remain a threat for decades to come.
Dozens of vaccines in development
RIght now, dozens of potential SARS‑CoV‑2 vaccines are being developed in countries across the globe, including here in Canada, with some as far along as human trials as companies race to release options years ahead of typical timelines.
Infectious disease expert Dr. Matthew Miller, an associate professor at