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FILE PHOTO A vial with a potential Covid-19 vaccine at Novavax labs in Rockville, Maryland. March 2020. \u00a9 AFP \/ Andrew Caballero-Reynolds<\/p><\/div>\n
Covid-19 could be \u201cpetering out by itself\u201d before the world comes up with any vaccine, a leading academic, formerly the World Health Organization\u2019s (WHO) top oncologist has said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a real chance that the virus will burn out naturally before any vaccine is developed,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Karol Sikora, the dean of the University of Buckingham\u2019s medical school,\u00a0wrote<\/a>\u00a0on Twitter.<\/p>\n We\u2019re seeing a roughly similar pattern everywhere \u2013 I suspect we have more immunity than estimated. We need to keep slowing the virus, but it could be petering out by itself.<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The statement\u00a0triggered quite a response, making Sikora later clarify that it was hi personal opinion and he was positing a\u00a0\u201cfeasible scenario\u201d<\/em>\u00a0that might be possible in the current\u00a0\u201cunknown situation.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0The scientist went on to say that no one knows\u00a0\u201cwhat will happen for sure\u201d<\/em>\u00a0and urged the public to stick to social distancing rules.<\/p>\n Countries and companies across the world have been racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, which has claimed more than 312,000 lives thus far, according to Johns Hopkins University.<\/p>\n