Health News Roundup: Russia's Sputnik V vaccine 92% effective; Ireland reports 101 COVID-19 deaths in highest daily total and more

The findings of the paper, published ahead of peer-review by Preprints with The Lancet, supported Britain's decision to extend the interval between initial and booster doses of the shot to 12 weeks, Oxford said on Tuesday.

Breast cancer has overtaken lung cancer as the most common form of the disease, accounting for nearly 12% of new cases each year worldwide, the World Health Organisation said on Tuesday. "For the first time, breast cancer now constitutes the most commonly occurring cancer globally," Andre Ilbawi, a cancer specialist at the WHO, told a U.N. briefing ahead of World Cancer Day on Thursday.

White House plans to send vaccine doses to retail pharmacies

The White House will launch a new program making coronavirus vaccines available to retail pharmacies starting on Feb 11, a top aide said on Tuesday. White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said the program will launch next week and make 1 million doses available to 6,500 stores.

Ireland reports 101 COVID-19 deaths in highest daily total

Ireland reported 101 deaths related to COVID-19 on Tuesday, the highest number of deaths confirmed in a single day since the start of the pandemic, exceeding the previous peak of 93 from Jan. 19. The daily death toll is published by the National Public Health Emergency Team and can include fatalities that took place weeks ago but were just confirmed to authorities on the day in question.

Swiss pleasure cruiser turned into vaccine 'shot ship' for lakeside towns

An 89-year-old passenger ship, out of commission due to the coronavirus pandemic, was re-purposed on Tuesday as a COVID-19 vaccination centre for thousands of residents from cities on Lake Constance. The 500-passenger MS Thurgau normally carries tourists and commuters between German and Swiss cities on Europe's third-largest lake. In coming weeks it will serve as a floating inoculation hub for northern Swiss towns Romanshorn, Arbon and Kreuzlingen.

Oxford finds COVID-19 shot 76% effective for 3 months after single dose

Oxford University and AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine showed in a study it had 76% efficacy against symptomatic infection for three months after a single dose, which increased if the second shot is delayed, backing Britain's vaccine rollout policy. The findings of the paper, published ahead of peer-review by Preprints with The Lancet, supported Britain's decision to extend the interval between initial and booster doses of the shot to 12 weeks, Oxford said on Tuesday.

Canada signs first deal to make foreign COVID-19 vaccine, new cases start to drop

Canada has signed its first deal to allow a foreign coronavirus vaccine to be manufactured domestically, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday as cases began to drop steadily. The Novavax Inc vaccine - still awaiting approval from Canadian regulators - will be produced in a new government facility in Montreal that is due to be finished later this year.

Russia's Sputnik V vaccine 92% effective in fighting COVID-19

Scientists gave Russia's Sputnik V vaccine the green light on Tuesday saying it was almost 92% effective in fighting COVID-19 based on peer-reviewed late-stage trial results published in The Lancet international medical journal. Experts said the Phase III trial results meant the world had another effective weapon to fight the deadly pandemic and justified to some extent Moscow's decision to roll out the vaccine before final data had been released.