There's a lot of weird tweets popping up about how we shouldn't need a vaccine for COVID-19, questions around why a vaccine is being hailed as The Answer and not anti-viral treatments, etc.

As a health journalist, I want to give a super simplified answer to this.

(1) Viruses are essentially microscopic parasites. So they invade our cells to reproduce and invade other cells. That's like, their whole deal.

They exist to spread and multiply. And as they do this, they can interact with DNA and change and do all sorts of wacky things.

They aren't really ALIVE, per se. They're kind of just these creepy strands of genetic material that go around looking for host cells — but they have no cells of their own and can only survive through living cells.

(2) So to answer the question of anti-viral medication... anti-virals don't actually "kill" viruses. So they aren't necessarily a "cure."

They sort of trap them and slow down their ability to multiply while our bodies immune system tries to take control of the situation.

Anti-viral medications also sometimes have a very brief window of time in which they are actually effective, at the very start of an infection... and most people aren't aware they are ill until after that window has passed.

And EVEN THEN, viruses can stay dormant in our cells and stick around... and even reactivate later on.

Our immune systems are a critical part of how we survive viral infections. Specifically, when our immune systems create antibodies to fight off the virus.

(3) Antibodies are basically our immune system's ~customized fighters~ for various infections. These are the cells that rush to your defense when you're sick!

And for the Big Bad Infections, your immune system actually has specialized cells (called T and B cells) to remember their battle tactics if you're ever sick again!

Which is why you don't often "get" the same virus twice (unless it mutates into another unfamiliar strain).

Your antibodies figure out a way of breaking down the viral genetic material by literally BINDING to the virus, and then sending additional cells to destroy them.

Pretty metal.

(Some viruses have workarounds for this, like HIV. But in general, this is how it works.)

These antibodies are why (4) WE NEED A FREAKIN' VACCINE.

In a nutshell, vaccines take a super weak version of the virus + antigens (proteins that tell our immune system to start creating the specific antibodies that are needed!), and they introduce it to our bodies to prep them.

It's basically teaching our bodies how to recognize the invader and fight off the virus before we actually encounter it, so that we can contain them *without* being overtaken by them and being made seriously ill.

Yes, vaccines involve some level of exposure! The difference is, it is less dangerous for our bodies than the actual infections we are at risk of contracting — both because it is weakened and it halts the spread of the virus.

It's true that some viruses do not have effective vaccines right now, and that vaccines take time. It is not the be-all end-all.

This is why other scientists are working on anti-viral drugs in the meantime, which can slow down the virus and assist in our recovery.

HOWEVER...

It's important to remember that anti-viral drugs also take a lot of time to develop and to be proven safe (this requires clinical trials of large populations over a period of time) + do NOT halt the spread of a virus in our communities — they aid our bodies, not our populations.

So to treat *individuals* who contract the virus, we need to test anti-viral drugs.

But to prevent further spread and infection (and by extension, grave illness and death), our only defenses are PHYSICAL ISOLATION or a VACCINE.

So why not just isolate and test the hell out of people? Because (6) isolation is difficult to do logistically, & when viruses continue to spread, they also MUTATE.

Which is how you get multiple (and often more deadly) strains and greater difficulty treating and containing them.

(Heh. I skipped 5. Ah well.)

Isolation can contain viruses to a certain extent, but they don't actually eliminate them, because they can still spread and infect people, especially when folks aren't isolating soon enough or very effectively. Just at a slower rate.

With an effective vaccine, if we immunize enough folks, we can get something called "herd immunity." If the vast majority of people are protected against the virus, it won't be able to find a host and will essentially be weeded out of the human population.

Em doing The Most by explaining this a bit more down below: https://twitter.com/eboncat/status/1250220965289545729

Let's try a metaphor to tie this all together, shall we?

I want you to imagine that viruses are like very nefarious characters on The Sims. They crash into your house and they try setting it on fire while you're asleep.

Every time they set a house on fire, the randomizer opens up and creates ANOTHER Sim, who, if given enough time, goes looking for other houses to set on fire.

The randomizer might give it new abilities, like running faster to the next house, or lock-picking, or invisibility!

Physical distancing takes all the houses in the neighborhood and spreads them way, wayyyy far apart, so your Virus Sim has to run a lot more distance to get to another house to set on fire.

Sometimes it collapses before it can reach another house.

Anti-virals are kind of like, slightly flame-resistant walls and doors. It slows down the rate at which the house burns, so that gives you more time to react and call the fire department, as long as you wake up/detect the fire!

Smaller fire = more easily contained.

Vaccines are like security systems for your house! They go off the second the arsonist/virus Sim tries to get near your house. You're now wide awake, and the virus Sim is like, WTF! Giving you the chance to scare it off or grab a fire extinguisher.

If everyone has security systems on their houses, the virus Sim is going to die from exhaustion, unable to find a house to set on fire to create more ~arson Sims.~

And it won't have a chance to develop new skills through the randomizer to get better at burning down houses.

Effectively, anti-virals lead to a smaller fire (sometimes), so there's less damage to *your* house.

Isolation is going to spread out the houses, slowing down the rate at which houses are set on fire.

But vaccines are going to stop the fires from being set in the first place.

If you want more of the science-y stuff about what's going on with anti-virals and vaccines specific to COVID-19, this is a helpful resource: https://www.healthline.com/health-news/heres-exactly-where-were-at-with-vaccines-and-treatments-for-covid-19

The point is, suggesting that anti-viral drugs are a suitable replacement for vaccines is an apples to oranges comparison. They serve completely different purposes.

And especially for immunocompromised folks, who have less defenses against these viruses, it's a very privileged position to say that anti-viral drugs are the answer.

Some folks simply cannot afford to get sick in the first place and NEED herd immunity for protection, period.

That says nothing of a resurgence of a virus, which could happen if we don't have mass, *collective* protection against the virus!

Anti-virals don't prevent a resurgence, and we can't realistically isolate forever.

If you're anti-vaccine, you are pro-death. That is just the reality, especially in this case. You're saying that only people who manage to contract a milder case and have immune systems that are capable of surviving COVID-19 deserve to live.

That's deeply messed up.

You're co-signing a stance that allows this virus to continue to replicate and mutate, leading to even deadlier and more contagious strains. Treating individuals isn't the same as containing an outbreak. And isolation is just not as effective (nor sustainable) as a vaccination.

And for the "I'm not hopeful about a vaccine" crowd, Danica has news for you (TY!!): https://twitter.com/somethingwithad/status/1250222527894433792

Anywho, as a ~journalist~ it's my job to read a lot of research and simplify what Smart Science-y People are saying.

If any Smart Science-y People in the Twitterverse want to chime in, add corrections, etc, please feel free! I am but one small, tired typing bean.

Tl;dr, stop the anti-vax nonsense, STAY HOME, and take very good care of yourselves out there, okay?

And for the love of all that is good in this world, listen to scientists, public health officials, and health workers. They know what's up.