Early in the pandemic, before the advent of COVID-specific vaccines, scientists began trials to see if existing vaccines might help. One they looked at was the BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin) vaccine, developed a century ago to combat tuberculosis. Researchers theorized that in the absence of targeted vaccines, BCG injections might offer a general boost to the immune system. Now, the results of two separate trials suggest the shots might provide protection, at least in vulnerable populations. Both trials were small: One involved 144 people with Type I diabetes, while the other involved 300 older people with health problems like heart or lung disease. In each, those who received the BCG shots developed COVID much less frequently than those who received placebo. “The results are as dramatic as for the Moderna and Pfizer mRNA vaccines,” said the lead author of one of the studies. In the other, people who got BCG shots also were hospitalized at lower levels than the control group. View More…