2023-06-20 09:26:13
by Giuseppe Sarcina
The most famous virologist in the world dictates his “decalogue” and replies to Corriere dela Sera on the most controversial doubts and topics regarding the pandemic
Anthony Fauci, 82, the best-known virologist in the world, until a few months ago advisor to the White House, held a conference yesterday, Monday 19 June, in Rome at the Accademia dei Lincei, led by Roberto Antonelli (president) and by the vice president, Giorgio Parisi, Nobel Prize for Physics. Fauci presented a sort of handbook: the ten lessons we must draw from the pandemic (see the end of the article). Before the speech he gave this interview to Corriere della Sera.
Is the pandemic over? Can we fully return to normal? “We are in a much, much better condition than, say, a year or two ago. But there are still traces of Covid circulating, albeit at a much, much lower level. Therefore, even if we can say that we are leaving the virus behind, we cannot say that it is completely gone. However, the fact that the level of prevalence is so low allows us to think that we are very, very close to normal. We are not yet at pre-Covid normality, but we are close. The fact that there are still outbreaks of Covid around means that vulnerable people, especially the elderly, those with pre-existing illnesses or undergoing chemotherapy need to be wary of crowds. They can evaluate whether to protect themselves with a mask, even if it is not mandatory ».
If the pandemic becomes endemic, as many experts predict, will we have to get vaccinated every year, like the flu?
“It is likely that this will happen in the United States. Meanwhile, people, at least the most vulnerable, are recommended to get vaccinated in September or October both against Covid and against the flu. We don’t know if this will be the rule for the next few years as well».
Is it likely or possible that other aggressive and high-capacity variants will emerge? In general it might seem unlikely: a spreading virus doesn’t kill the person who hosts it. But Covid has already surprised us…
“I think we always have to be prepared to deal with variants that have both a high degree of transmission and a high level of pathogenesis. But there are some elements to our advantage. To begin with, the population has reached a good threshold of immunity, which has been produced both by vaccines and by having already contracted the infection. Many then got both vaccinated and infected. All of this greatly reduces the chances that a variant of Coronavirus could bypass the shield of this accumulated immunity over time. Warning: the odds are low, but not reduced to zero.”
In addition to vaccines, what other strategies can be implemented to combat this or other viruses? Can we count on effective and tolerable antiviral drugs as well as future easy-to-use monoclonals?
“Yes, both. At the moment there is great activity to develop monoclonal antibodies that could act in a very targeted way against the virus that is still circulating. We had good monoclonal preparations in the first months and years of the pandemic. But as Covid-19 began to evolve and present itself with different variants, the protection of monoclonal antibodies failed. However, new monoclonal antibodies are being developed very, very quickly. As for anti virals: there is still a lot of work to do, but we already have a very effective product, Paxlovid. If a person has been vaccinated and boostered but still becomes infected, it is important that they have access to Paxlovid. At that point it is extremely unlikely that she will die.’
Bill Gates argues that we must be ready for the next pandemic and that the contagion will be catastrophic. An ominous prediction. Do you share it?
«Well, I would change this expression a bit. There is always the possibility, as I said, of a pandemic. It is a fact that has accompanied humanity since the beginning of history, indeed even before the history we can remember. We recently had a flu outbreak in 1918, then 1957, 1968, 2009, and right now we’re in the down phase of a pandemic that we haven’t seen in 100 years. So it is logical to think that, sooner or later, there will be another contagion. But we don’t know when: it could be in a year or in 10 or 50 years. I mean: we have to be prepared, but the next pandemic is not necessarily inevitable”.
What were the most obvious mistakes in the fight against the coronavirus worldwide? What lessons must we learn?
«I prefer to concentrate on this last point. Here in Rome, at the Accademia dei Lincei, I present precisely “the ten lessons” to keep in mind. Most importantly, pandemics are unpredictable. We cannot think that we can imagine what will happen, just because we have already had other experiences. Covid has taught us that we must expect the unexpected ».
Meanwhile, the scientific community has not yet established the origin of Covid 19. Should the possibility that it was generated in a laboratory in Wuhan be excluded?
“Right now we have a large body of data collected by scientists from all over the world that indicate that the virus is of animal origin. But it is not yet conclusive evidence. At this stage there are many rumors and also a lot of misinformation. But since we don’t have definitive results, we need to keep an open mind.”
There are those who accuse her of being skeptical of the hypothesis of the escape from the laboratory because her Institute in Washington had supported some controversial research in the Chinese laboratory in Wuhan, financed by American public funds…
«Don’t look. I just replied: you have to keep an open mind about the origin of the virus ».
But it is a fact that there could be more transparency: we don’t even know the number of laboratories engaged in virus research…
“The scientific community tries very hard to be very transparent and I believe that we will always need to monitor and review our procedures, in order to be sure that we are operating safely and appropriately.”
You have been one of the great protagonists in the fight against AIDS and in recent years against Covid. What do these two experiences have in common? What were the biggest difficulties?
«Well, in the beginning, in the United States, AIDS was a phenomenon restricted only to the homosexual population. Covid immediately presented itself as a universal issue. We have had to work hard to remove the stigma of discrimination attached to AIDS patients. We did it, I think.”
But there is still no vaccine against AIDS? Why?
“True, but we have very effective treatments. Infected people today can literally lead normal lives if they have access to anti-viral drugs. Furthermore, thanks to President George W. Bush’s plan, we have provided medicines and nurtured prevention in Africa. With the result, after twenty years, of having saved 25 million lives. That’s one of the things I’m most proud of because I was the architect of that program. I find it really paradoxical that those who saved the lives of 25 million people should go around under guard”.
You have been challenged by small groups even here in Italy, the land of your grandparents. What effect did it have on her?
«Well, there are no vaxes almost everywhere. She didn’t surprise me to find them in Italy too. Misinformation has done great damage. As calculated by the Commonwealth Fund (a private and independent American foundation, ed), without vaccines there would have been, in the US alone, 3,255,656 more deaths, another 80 million people hospitalized and an additional expense of 1,000 billion dollars. This is my answer to the “no vax””
You’ve had a lot of problems with Donald Trump. That Administration moved in a very timely manner, also providing non-refundable funding for vaccine manufacturing companies. Why didn’t Trump capitalize on those achievements in political terms? After three years, have you got an idea?
“It’s a political question and I can’t answer it. But it is true that the anti-Covid Warp Speed operation (stratospheric speed ed) was very, very successful. Trump probably could have taken the credit for it. I don’t know why he didn’t do it.’
THE DECALOGUE OF FAUCI – The ten lessons of Covid 19
1) Expect the unexpected: don’t think you have enough experience to predict the developments of a pandemic
2) Act immediately and quickly at the first signs of contagion
3) Information exchange and collaboration on a global scale are essential
4) Use and network existing medical and research infrastructures
5) Put scientific research to good use also in fields other than epidemiology 6) Group the
7) Increase attention to the coexistence between humans and animals
8) Correct the social inequalities that are reflected in the health system
9) Misinformation is the enemy of proper pandemic management 10) It’s not over, until it’s over. A pandemic like the one of 19 cannot be eradicated or cancelled. However, it can be controlled
June 20, 2023 (change June 20, 2023 | 09:29)
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