Health News Roundup: Fast spreading bird flu puts EU poultry industry on edge; Britain records 17,555 new Coronavirus cases, 498 new deaths and more

Asked about the Bloomberg report on the additional trial, a spokesman for AstraZeneca said: "As we communicated earlier this week, there is strong merit in continuing to further investigate the half-dose/full dose regimen." Britain records 17,555 new Coronavirus cases, 498 new deaths Britain recorded 17,555 new coronavirus cases on Thursday and 498 new deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test, official data showed.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Americans defy pandemic, political leaders to travel for Thanksgiving

Americans defied pleas from state and local officials to stay home for the Thanksgiving holiday in the face of the surging coronavirus pandemic, triggering fresh warnings from health officials with the release of vaccines still weeks away. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden joined in the calls for safety, urging people to forgo big family gatherings, wear protective masks and maintain social distancing.

Sao Paulo may use Sinovac vaccine without Brazil regulator's approval, governor says

The state of Sao Paulo could roll out the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Sinovac even without approval from Brazil's health regulator, the state's governor said in an interview on Thursday. The comment from Joao Doria comes amid concern among some critics of President Jair Bolsonaro that the independence of Brazil's health regulator Anvisa is under threat.

Canada could approve Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine 'around December'

Canada could approve Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine "around December," about the same time as the United States and the European Union, a senior official at Canada's drug regulator said on Thursday. Health Canada had said previously that an approval would likely come early in the first quarter, under a new accelerated review process very similar to that in place in the United States.

Fast spreading bird flu puts EU poultry industry on edge

A highly contagious and deadly form of avian influenza is spreading rapidly in Europe, putting the poultry industry on alert with previous outbreaks in mind that saw tens of millions of birds culled and significant economic losses. The disease, commonly called bird flu, has been found in France, the Netherlands, Germany, Britain, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Sweden and, for the first time this week in Croatia, Slovenia and Poland, after severely hitting Russia, Kazakhstan and Israel.

Russia's Sputnik V developers call on AstraZeneca to try combining vaccines

Developers of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine said on Thursday that AstraZeneca should try combining its experimental shot with the Russian one to boost efficacy. Russia said its Sputnik V vaccine is 92% effective at protecting people from COVID-19, according to interim trial results, while AstraZeneca said its COVID-19 vaccine was 70% effective in pivotal trials and could be up to 90% effective.

Bank of Canada says recent COVID-19 vaccine news is promising

The recent news about coronavirus vaccines is promising although cases are continuing to increase, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem told the House of Commons finance committee on Thursday. In late October, the bank said it assumed a vaccine would not be widely available until mid-2022. Since then, a number of manufacturers have announced potential vaccines that - if approved by regulators - could be distributed starting early next year.

Analysis: Questions over AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine data risk delaying approval

Days after grabbing headlines with its COVID-19 "vaccine for the world", AstraZeneca is facing tricky questions about its success rate that some experts say could hinder its chances of getting speedy U.S. and EU regulatory approval. Several scientists have raised doubts about the robustness of results showing the shot was 90% effective in a sub-group of trial participants who, by error initially, received a half dose followed by a full dose.

AstraZeneca says working with regulators on best approach to lower dose regimen

AstraZeneca is working with regulators to investigate a lower dosage of its vaccine that performed better than a full dosage, a spokesman for the company said, after its chief executive was quoted as saying an additional global trial was likely. Asked about the Bloomberg report on the additional trial, a spokesman for AstraZeneca said: "As we communicated earlier this week, there is strong merit in continuing to further investigate the half-dose/full dose regimen."

Britain records 17,555 new Coronavirus cases, 498 new deaths

Britain recorded 17,555 new coronavirus cases on Thursday and 498 new deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test, official data showed. Both measures were lower than on Wednesday, when there were 18,213 new coronavirus infections and 696 deaths.

Italy reports 29,003 new coronavirus cases, 822 deaths - health ministry

Italy reported 822 COVID 19-related deaths on Thursday, up from 722 the day before, and 29,003 new infections, up from 25,853 on Wednesday, the health ministry said. There were 232,711 swabs carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 230,007.

(With inputs from agencies.)