Cameroon launches world’s first malaria vaccination program for children

Cameroon will be the first country to routinely immunize children with the new malaria vaccine as inoculations begin in Africa.

Officials say the campaign, scheduled to begin on Monday, is a milestone in decades of efforts to control the mosquito disease, which is prevalent on the African continent, which accounts for 95% of the world’s malaria deaths. .

“Vaccination saves lives. It will bring great relief to families and the country’s health system,” said Aurelia Nguyen, chief program officer of the Gavi Vaccine Alliance, which is helping Cameroon secure vaccines. Ta.

The central African country hopes to vaccinate around 250,000 children this year and next. Gabi said the country is working with 20 other African countries to support vaccinations and hopes they will be able to immunize more than 6 million children by 2025.

Approximately 250 million people in Africa are affected by this parasitic disease each year, and 600,000 of them die, mostly young children.

Cameroon plans to use the first of two recently approved malaria vaccines, known as Mosquirix. The World Health Organization approved the vaccine two years ago, acknowledging that although it is imperfect, its use dramatically reduces severe infections and hospitalizations.

The vaccine made by GlaxoSmithKline is only about 30% effective, requires four doses, and protection begins to wear off after a few months. The vaccine was tested in Africa and used in pilot programs in three countries.

GSK has said Moscrix can only produce about 15 million doses a year, and some experts believe a second malaria vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford and approved by the WHO in October, is a more realistic solution. I think there is a possibility that this could be a solution. The vaccine is inexpensive and requires three shots, and the Serum Institute of India said it could produce up to 200 million doses a year.

Gabi’s Nguyen said she was hopeful there was enough of the Oxford vaccine to potentially start vaccinating people later this year.

Neither malaria vaccine will stop transmission, so other tools such as bed nets and insecticide spraying remain important. Malaria parasites are spread to people primarily through infected mosquitoes and can cause symptoms such as fever, headache, and chills.

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