Thanks to Moderna’s and Pfizer’s highly effective COVID-19 vaccines, “messenger RNA” has become a household term — and a source of misinformation and confusion. Although about two-thirds of eligible Americans have received at least one dose of a vaccine, many remain skeptical of the technology behind the Moderna and Pfizer shots.
History shows that resistance to medical advancements is to be expected. In the early 1800s, the smallpox vaccine induced fear and even riots. In 1978, the birth of the first baby created via in vitro fertilization sparked shock and outrage among the public. Today, smallpox is no longer a public health threat because of mass vaccination campaigns, and IVF is a normalized procedure that results in 500,000 babies born annually worldwide.
What this tells us is that acceptance of messenger RNA technology will likely take time — but future applications could dissolve objections we hear now. In some ways, the story of this technology is just beginning, because mRNA has uses beyond vaccines that are potentially even more transformative.
If the technology proves that it can safely deliver cures as well as it can prevent COVID-19, concerns about it could eventually fade, too.
