The phases of vaccines and drug clinical trials

I have been discussing the nature of the trials for the vaccine and the different phases. This article discusses what each phase involves. I had thought that there were just three phases but it turns out that there are five, at least when it comes to cancer treatments, with just the middle three getting the most attention. I am not sure if that is the case for every new treatment.

Phase 0

Phase 0 trials are the first clinical trials done among people. They aim to learn how a drug is processed in the body and how it affects the body. In these trials, a very small dose of a drug is given to about 10 to 15 people.

Phase I

Phase I trials aim to find the best dose of a new drug with the fewest side effects. The drug will be tested in a small group of 15 to 30 patients. Doctors start by giving very low doses of the drug to a few patients. Higher doses are given to other patients until side effects become too severe or the desired effect is seen. The drug may help patients, but Phase I trials are to test a drug’s safety. If a drug is found to be safe enough, it can be tested in a phase II clinical trial.
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The Skepticamp talks are now online

The Monterey Skepticamp conference on January 2, 2021 where I gave a talk was enjoyable and informative, covering quite a range of topics. All the talks have been posted online. The full program is can be seen here.

The full video for the day’s program is 7 hours 27 minutes long. I give below the starting times for each talk which we were asked to limit to 20 minutes to allow for 10 minutes of Q/A . After the opening welcome remarks by organizer Susan Gerbic and a small quiz by Arlen Grossman, the rest of the talks were as follows:

35 minutes: András Gábor Pintér – Building Bridges – Why we need to organize to bring skepticism forward

1 hour 14 minutes: Janyce Boynton – Facilitated Communication – I Thought That Died in the 1990s!

1 hour 56 minutes: Stuart Vyse – Do Superstitions Work?

2 hours 27minutes: Kelly Burke – Guerrilla Skeptics on Wikipedia

2 hours 54 minutes: Monica Ashly – Guerrilla Skeptics on Wikipedia

4 hours 12 minutes: Richard Saunders (host of Skeptic Zone) –  So you want to do a Skeptical Podcast?

4 hours 53 minutes: Adrienne Hill – Tourette Syndrome: Stereotypes and CAM treatments

5 hours 29 minutes: Kyle Polich – Data Skeptic: “I don’t know anyone who has COVID-19”

5 hours 59 minutes: Mano Singham – The Copernican Myths

6 hours 30 minutes: Rob Palmer – Belief in Psychics: What’s the Harm and Who’s to Blame?

California’s covid-19 vaccination plan

In addition to Trump botching the response to the pandemic by dismissing its seriousness and deliberately undercutting common-sense precautionary measures like wearing masks, the vaccination process has also been rocky, leading to a much slower rollout than anticipated, while leaving the public confused as to when and where they will be able to get the vaccine and how they will be told.

My local newspaper the Monterey Herald lays out California’s plan for vaccinating people that I suspect is similar to what other states are planning so I am posting it for the benefit of those who are curious as to when they might be getting the vaccine.
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The UK’s rapidly rising covid-19 cases

While much attention has focused on the wild events US, we should not forget that the UK is having a major resurgence of covid-19 cases that has put a major strain on the health services and led to a strict lockdown though some health experts are arguing that it should be even more strict. Prime minister Boris Johnson has seen his support plummet because of his handling of the pandemic.

Jonathan Pie vents his fury at the vacillations and indecision and mixed messages of Johnson.

And now … killer squirrels?

As if the news from Washington about Trump’s rampaging goons wasn’t bad enough, we now have to deal with the possibility of rampaging killer squirrels in New York City.

At least three people in Rego Park, in the borough of Queens, have been jumped upon and bitten by the possibly deranged squirrel in recent weeks. The tree-based rodent’s reign of terror has made some people in the area afraid to go outside without being armed with pepper spray or other anti-squirrel weaponry.

“A few people are quite scared,” Micheline Frederick, a local resident, told Guardian US. Frederick was herself targeted by the squirrel in a bloody attack on 21 December, when she was holding her front door open for furniture movers.
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Denying reality to the end

Early yesterday morning, Trump tweeted the following:

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My talk on the Copernican myths

I will be giving a short talk on the myths surrounding the Copernican revolution from 3:45pm-4:15pm (Pacific Time in the US) on Saturday, January 2, 2021. The talk is part of the annual one-day Skepticamp conference held in Monterey, though this year it will be virtual on Zoom and free and open to anyone. To see the full program and the link to join, go here.

There are a lot of false beliefs surrounding the response to Copernicus’s ideas about the universe being heliocentric rather than geocentric, one of the most prominent being that his ideas were strongly opposed by the church because they demoted the Earth and human beings from the privileged position of being at the center of the universe.

Anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers getting even more aggressive

The Republican governor of the state of New Hampshire has cancelled his public outdoor inauguration swearing-in ceremony scheduled for January 7th because of armed protestors who oppose his mask mandate.

“My first responsibility is ensuring the safety of my family and our citizens,” Gov. Chris Sununu said. “For weeks, armed protesters have increasingly become more aggressive, targeting my family, protesting outside my private residence and trespassing on my property — an outdoor public ceremony simply brings too much risk. We do not make this decision lightly, but it is the right thing to do.”
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For weeks, protesters have gathered at Sununu’s home in Newfields, calling for an end to the state of emergency. Prompting the town to adopt an ordinance that prohibits residential picketing.

Monday night, a group known as “Absolute Defiance” held what they called a vigil outside Sununu’s home.

“Late Monday night, an individual, an armed individual was arrested in my backyard with over two dozen rounds of ammunition,” Sununu said. “And, as governor, my obligation is to the safety of my family, to the safety of the citizens of this state and so therefore, it was prudent to cancel that event and make further adjustments.”

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Subdued New Year’s Eve celebrations

My idea of a great New Year’s eve is to spend it at home and go to bed at the usual time. On a few occasions I have been invited to a friend’s house for a party and everyone was given a pointy hat and noisemaker and all watched the TV and waited for the clock to run down and the ball to drop before letting out a cheer and then going around wishing everyone. I took part in these because the people are nice and I did not want to be a grouch but it all seemed so strained and artificial.

This year it looks like much of the world will be cutting back on such celebrations. France has banned gatherings and has assigned 100,000 police to break up parties and enforce a curfew. New York City has announced that Times Square, where revelers usually gather, has been closed and the traditional ball drop has been canceled.
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My talk on the myths surrounding Copernicus

There are a lot of false beliefs surrounding the response to Copernicus’s ideas about the universe being heliocentric rather than geocentric, one of the most prominent being that his ideas were strongly opposed because they demoted the Earth and human beings from the privileged position of being at the center of the universe.

I have written on this topic before, including in my book The Great Paradox of Science, and will be giving a short talk on this from 3:45pm-4:15pm (Pacific Time in the US) on Saturday, January 2, 2021.

The talk is part of the annual one-day Skepticamp conference held in Monterey, though this year it will be virtual on Zoom and free and open to anyone. To see the full program and the link to join, go here.