Moderna reports trial success for dual Covid and flu vaccine

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Moderna’s combined Covid and influenza vaccine was as effective as separate shots in an early stage trial, giving the US biotech company hope that the more convenient way of protecting against the diseases could be approved by 2025.

Interim data measuring antibody levels from the phase-1/2 trial showed the combined jab elicited a similar or greater immune response to flu viruses as currently approved flu vaccines, including Sanofi’s high-dose shots designed for the elderly. The jab also elicited a similar immune response to Sars-Cov-2 as Moderna’s Covid-19 booster, known as Spikevax. 

The combined vaccine also showed a similar pattern of side effects as the Covid-19 booster. Most were minor but less than 4 per cent of participants aged 50 or older suffered from more serious reactions, although they did not require hospitalisation. 

Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s chief executive, said the company would begin a late-stage phase-3 trial of the vaccine this year. 

“Flu and Covid-19 represent a significant seasonal burden for individuals, providers, healthcare systems and economies,” he said. “Combination vaccines offer an important opportunity to improve consumer and provider experience, increase compliance with public health recommendations and deliver value for healthcare systems.”

Stephen Hoge, president at Moderna, said healthcare systems could save $30-$40 per vaccine in administration costs such as refrigeration and transportation if they were to use a combined shot.

With sales of Covid-19 vaccines falling because of lacklustre uptake, some vaccine makers are hoping that a combined shot taken every autumn will help tackle vaccine fatigue. 

But some experts believe it would not be much more convenient for patients than giving two vaccines at the same time, which is already done. Others fear that patients will not tolerate the same level of side effects — including inflammation and fever — for annual shots as they did during the pandemic. 

Hoge said side-effects from the Covid-19 booster were significantly better than for the primary series of vaccines given during the pandemic, and that the combined shot would be targeted at older people who were not at risk of the serious but rare side-effect of a heart problem called myocarditis. 

Moderna’s data follows trial results from Novavax, which develops protein-based vaccines, and in May reported that its combined shot was as good as its own Covid-19 vaccine candidate and competitors’ approved flu jabs in a phase-2 trial.

The Covid-19 vaccines developed during the pandemic became the first shots to use messengerRNA technology, which uses a genetic code to teach the immune system to recognise the virus. While these initial shots from Moderna and BioNTech/Pfizer were highly effective, scientists have been divided over whether the success would be replicated when creating vaccines to tackle other pathogens. 

The early results for Moderna’s combined shot come after the company reported last month that its reformulated flu vaccine performed better than its previous attempt.

Initial data on antibody levels from a late-stage trial suggested its vaccine could compete against GSK’s Fluarix. Moderna is discussing the approval process with regulators.