Amid findings over studies from other countries showing a more dangerous coronavirus strain, a top health official doesn’t seem convinced on what has been found in the new COVID-19 variant.
At the meeting called for by President Rodrigo Duterte himself last Saturday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said that there is no evidence yet that the new coronavirus strain is more severe and infectious than the original form.
Responding to Duque, infectious diseases expert and concurrent President of the Philippine College of Physicians Dr. Mario Panaligan said that it is natural that viruses would mutate even as he claimed that the novel coronavirus had other mutations but are less concerning.
“Tandaan natin na may pagkakataon lang na pailan-ilan, mas nagiging nakakahawa. At huwag naman sanang mangyari na may lumabas na (Let’s remember that it will happen that it will be easily transmissible. And we hope it doesn’t happen that there will be a new) mutant na nagiging dahilan para maging mas grabe ‘yung sakit (which will make the sickness more severe),” he said.
To ensure detection and control the spread of the new coronavirus variant in the country, Panaligan said the Philippines should intensify its virus surveillance and genomic sequencing.
“Doon sa mga pasyente na naging malala, gagawan nila ng (For the patients whose sickness became extreme, they should do) genomic sequencing para malaman natin kung variant din ‘yan (to find out if it’s also a variant). Kasi hindi lang sa UK posibleng mangyari yun e. Pati sa atin, pwedeng magkaroon ng (It’s because it is not just in the UK that it will happen.. There’s a possibility of a variant entering our country), variant” he said.
For now, Panaligan advised the public to keep observing the minimum health standards to protect themselves from COVID-19.
Panaligan however mellowed down by allaying concerns that the currently available vaccines against COVID-19 would not work against the new variant of the coronavirus from the United Kingdom, adding that there is no need to panic as the current vaccines developed by biopharmaceutical companies around the world would still be used for the new strain, in case there is one in the Philippines.
He added that a COVID-19 vaccine would allow a person to develop enough antibodies to ward off the novel coronavirus even as it has already mutated.
“Ang bakuna naman maraming (A vaccine has many) antibodies ‘yan na made-develop natin kapag nabakunahan tayo (that we can develop once we are vaccinated). So posible pa rin siyang malabanan kahit na nag-mutate ‘yan (it’s still possible to counter its deadly effects even if it manages to mutate),” he said.
“Hindi naman dapat tayo matakot na hindi na magiging epektibo ‘yung bakuna kasi maraming (we don’t have to be scared that the vaccine won’t be effective because we can produce many) antibodies tayong mapo-produce kapag nabakunahan tayo (we can produce once we are vaccinated),” he added.
The new coronavirus variant detected in the United Kingdom, SARS-CoV-2 VUI 202012/01 (Variant Under Investigation, year 2020, month 12, variant 01), was reported to be 70 percent more transmissible than SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Duque on Saturday announced that one of the 79 passengers that arrived in the Philippines from the UK have tested positive for COVID-19, though it is not yet known whether or not the person was carrying the new variant.