Moderna, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines, announced that it has submitted an authorization application to Swissmedic for use of its COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents.
“We are pleased to announce that we have submitted an authorization application for our COVID-19 vaccine with Swissmedic for use in adolescents in Switzerland,” said Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer of Moderna. “We are encouraged that the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine was highly effective at preventing COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 infection in adolescents. We have already filed for authorization with the U.S. FDA, Health Canada and the European Medicines Agency and we will continue to file with regulatory agencies around the world for this important younger age population. We remain focused on helping to end the COVID-19 pandemic.”
In May, the Company announced that the Phase 2/3 TeenCOVE study of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents met its primary immunogenicity endpoint, successfully bridging immune responses to the adult vaccination. In the study, no cases of COVID-19 were observed in participants who had received two doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine using the primary definition. The vaccine efficacy in the nearly 2,500 adolescents who received the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine was observed to be 100% when using the same case definition as in the Phase 3 COVE study in adults. In addition, a vaccine efficacy of 93% in seronegative participants was observed starting 14 days after the first dose using the secondary Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) case definition of COVID-19, which tested for milder disease. The study enrolled 3,732 participants ages 12 to less than 18 years in the U.S.
The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine was generally well tolerated with a safety and tolerability profile generally consistent with the Phase 3 COVE study in adults. No significant safety concerns have been identified to date. The majority of adverse events were mild or moderate in severity. The most common solicited local adverse event was injection site pain. The most common solicited systemic adverse events after the second dose of mRNA-1273 were headache, fatigue, myalgia and chills. Safety data continues to accrue, and the study continues to be monitored by an independent safety monitoring committee. All participants will be monitored for 12 months after their second injection to assess long-term protection and safety. These data are subject to change based on ongoing data collection.