By: Gerald Commissiong, President & CEO Todos Medical Ltd.
With new strains of COVID-19 emerging globally and multiple vaccines in distribution, getting as much of the population vaccinated is just the tip of the iceberg. A critical next step is monitoring how immune systems respond to the vaccine and how confidently the vaccinated public can engage with one another without the risk of falling ill.
We are all acquainted with COVID-19 testing, whether it be molecular PCR, antigen or antibody, but testing the immune system’s response to the coronavirus vaccine itself will play a significant role in scaling our adaptation to this virus. This way, physicians and vaccination facilities will be able to monitor the population’s response to the vaccine.
Additionally, you would be able to use immune response test results to help determine your own immunity at any point in time. This can play an important role in your judgement to interact personally or professionally with other people months after receiving the vaccine.
To maintain immunity and ensure safety at a systematic level however, I believe a better process of immune-response testing needs to be implemented. Ideally, when a patient goes to the doctor for a COVID-19 vaccine or test, the doctor should also evaluate their immune status prior to and after vaccination. That way practitioners can track when immunity is gained and how long it might last with repeated immune testing.
As CEO of Todas Medical, an in-vitro diagnostic company focused on the early detection of cancer and Alzheimer’s disease, and COVID-19 testing, I have been working to implement measures to help increase COVID-19 response by developing a range of testing capabilities, mobile testing labs, nutraceuticals to stop replication of coronaviruses, and other initiatives. I believe testing the immune system after vaccination is a crucial next step that will become clear once the majority of the public gains access to the vaccine.
To make strides forward in this initiative, we recently partnered with Aditx Therapeutics, Inc. to distribute AditxtScore™ for COVID-19 to monitor immunity against SARS-CoV-2. The AditxtScore™ combines nine different factors, such as measuring for antibodies, T cells, and other changes in the immune system that a vaccine would prompt. Blood samples will be collected by Todos and/or our network of partners and sent to Aditxt’s CLIA accredited AditxtScore™ Center for processing.
In the future, for example, people may want to contemplate obtaining another vaccination or booster a couple of months after becoming vaccinated if tests show that they are losing immunity or are already unable to fight the virus.
Author Bio: Gerald Commissiong is President & CEO Todos Medical Ltd. (OTCQB: TOMDF), in addition to Amarantus Bioscience Holdings, Inc. and interim-CEO of Breakthrough Diagnostics, Inc., Todos’ joint venture with Amarantus. Mr. Commissiong has been responsible for Amarantus’ strategic transactions, licensing, research collaborations, mergers & acquisitions in therapeutics and diagnostics, as well as fund raising.
