As Trials Advance for a Malaria Vaccine, Policy Makers Urged to Plan for Its Use
As the first promising malaria vaccine makes its way through phase 3 clinical trials in sub-Saharan Africa, stakeholders' greatest fears go beyond the possibility that the vaccine may fail to meet safety and efficacy goals. They worry that even if the vaccine is licensed, inadequate planning for its distribution could leave it to languish in warehouses.
“After decades of research and tens of millions of dollars invested . . . it would be scandalous if this vaccine just sits on the shelf,” said Yvette Collymore, MA, of the nonprofit PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI), during a recent Washington, DC, conference.
Clinical trials like this one in Tanzania showed that the RTS,S malaria vaccine has a favorable safety and efficacy profile. The vaccine is now in phase 3 trials.
(John-Michael Maas/Darby Communications/AP Images)MVI and the vaccine's creator, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Biologicals, partnered in 2001 to develop the vaccine for infants and young children in sub-Saharan Africa.
http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/304/21/2348.extract
No comments:
Post a Comment