BCG vaccine trial update and SA’s low Covid-19 death rate, with Professor Andreas Diacon

In this interview, Professor Andreas Diacon shares an update on how the BCG vaccine trial is progressing, with BizNews founder Alec Hogg.
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Stellenbosch University Professor Andreas Diacon is the force behind a 500-person clinical trial aimed at determining whether the BCG vaccines many South Africans got as children to protect against TB are indeed a shield against Covid-19. The trial involves re-vaccination with the BCG that many of us received as children as a jab on the upper arm or thigh. Scientists believe there may be a correlation between the BCG vaccine and lower infection rates. This is because countries where BCG vaccines are universally administered have reported lower numbers of Covid-19 deaths than countries like the USA, Italy and Belgium where it was never used. South Africa has reported about 4,000 Covid-related deaths, which is a low death rate (about 1.5%), in relation to the number of cases reported compared to other countries. In this interview, Professor Diacon shares an update on how the BCG vaccine trial is progressing, with BizNews founder Alec Hogg. – Editor

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