Covid-19 ethics: Should we deliberately infect volunteers in the name of science? (part 1)

Science Weekly

• Episode: Covid-19 ethics: Should we deliberately infect volunteers in the name of science? (part 1)
• Website: Science Weekly
• Feed URL: https://www.theguardian.com/science/series/science/podcast.xml
• Duration: 00:24:57
• Published: 2020-09-15 06:00

Would you be willing to have a dose of Sars-CoV-2 sprayed up your nose for medical research? For thousands around the world, the answer is yes. Eager volunteers have already signed up to take part in human challenge trials, where participants would be deliberately infected with the virus in order to better understand the disease, and rapidly develop a treatment or vaccine. But should such studies go ahead with a dangerous and relatively new virus? In the first of two episodes, alongside a panel of experts Ian Sample delves into some of the ethical questions of human challenge trials and asks where the balance of risks and benefits currently lies. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod