The new R21 vaccine protects eight out of ten children against malaria. This makes it considerably better than the first vaccine that came on the market a few years ago, which is 40 to 50 percent effective. The results of R21 do come from a smaller study with 400 participants. The World Health Organization (WHO) is therefore waiting for the publication of a larger study with 5,000 participants.
READ ALSO. After the establishment of ‘Vaccinopolis’: is it allowed to infect patients with viruses? And who signs up for that?
Ghana says it has already seen the raw data. They would confirm the first results and so the country does not want to delay. This week it announced that it would authorize the new vaccine and start using it in babies and toddlers. Malaria claims about five million infections and 15,000 deaths in Ghana every year. Most of the fatalities are young children.
Expectations for the vaccine are high. The British developers themselves speak of a ‘world-changed’ medicine. That is possible, says Eline Kattenberg of the Malariology Department of the Institute of Tropical Medicine. “It can have enormous added value. It provides long-term and 24/7 protection. Another popular device, the mosquito net, offers protection when you sleep, but children also get stung when they play outside.”
It is no surprise that Ghana is leading the way. The country was heavily involved in the research and plans to build a vaccine factory. “Many pawns have already been placed,” says Kattenberg. Elsewhere, she says, success depends on the spread and implementation of the vaccine. That first factor seems to be fine. The Indian Serum Institute aims to produce up to 200 million doses annually. According to the WHO, 100 million is the minimum to deal a serious blow to malaria.
Four shots
Implementation is another story. The vaccine must be administered four times, with three starting injections and a booster injection one year later. It saddles countries with a tough logistical puzzle. That’s where it often pinches, Kattenberg also knows. “Malaria is already a treatable disease, but to control it you need a combination of prevention, proper diagnosis and effective treatments. In many poorer countries there is less access to good healthcare.”
It makes malaria still the sixth leading cause of death in low-income countries. Every year, more than half a million people die from the disease, mostly small children. No progress has been made since 2015. Still, Kattenberg is now hopeful. The large study that is currently underway in Ghana, but also in Malawi and Kenya, seems to show that a vaccination campaign is feasible. “Ultimately, it is a matter of finances and political will to set up the necessary infrastructure. The WHO is still considering how to fund vaccine programs. Ghana, one of the richer countries, can afford it itself.”
Whether the vaccine will really be a breakthrough in the fight against malaria remains to be seen. Anyway, it’s not too early. There are signals from regions where the disease is endemic that malaria mosquitoes are becoming resistant to insecticides and that medicines are having less and less impact on the parasite. “The vaccine is very much needed, also to face these new challenges.”
READ ALSO. Our man voluntarily allowed himself to be locked up in the ‘virus bunker’: “These are Spartan conditions”