In Africa, the first vaccination in history begins with dangerous malaria.
After decades of work and testing, the first pilot malaria vaccination program is just starting. It starts in Malawi, and in the coming weeks will also cover Ghana and Kenya.
In the first place, children under the age of two will be vaccinated and it is estimated that over one million will be vaccinated in the next three years. This is especially important because in Africa, more than 250,000 children die from malaria every year and scientists have been working on an effective vaccine for years, which will be able to significantly reduce this frightening number.
RTS, S / AS01, currently the most advanced malaria vaccine, was originally developed at the end of the eighties of the last century, but it had to undergo extensive and very rigorous clinical tests that were completed only a few years ago. Unfortunately, it should also be noted that the vaccine is able to prevent only 40% of cases and although this is not a good result, it will significantly reduce mortality.
According to Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, an organization formed to deliver vaccines to countries with lower income: - Malaria is still one of the largest child killers in the world, depriving over 200,000 children annually. These pilot programs are crucial to determining what role vaccines can play in reducing child mortality in the poorest countries in the world.
The pilot program in question will run until 2024, when the results will be collected and summarized, and then a wider implementation of these vaccinations will be considered. GSK, the company behind the development of this vaccine, funded over 10 million doses to support the fight against malaria. Unfortunately, the way the vaccine is administered is not ideal and requires a lot of commitment from both parties, because we're talking about one dose every month for three months between the fifth and ninth month of life, and then an additional one on the second birthday.
In some countries this will certainly be problematic, because it requires a total of 4 visits to a special point, but let's hope that the entire program can be implemented. It is also worth remembering that this is not the only malaria vaccine on the horizon, because GSK is already working on the next more effective generations of its product, and other corporations are also not lagging behind - one of them is reportedly at an early stage of work on a vaccine, which shows 100% effectiveness in the absence of any side effects.
Source: GeekWeek.pl/newatlas