WHO experts temper malaria vaccine hopes

WHO advisors have put a damper on hopes that the first malaria vaccine could soon reach African infants. In July, European regulators deemed the RTS,S vaccine safe, saying it provides “limited” but worthwhile protection in babies against Plasmodium falciparum, the malaria parasite most prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa. But last week, the WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization and its Malaria Policy Advisory Committee urged caution. They say the vaccine still needs another three to five “large pilot implementation projects” before it can be used widely, citing concerns about its delivery. The vaccine “requires four doses for a child to be fully protected and therefore requires additional contacts with the health care system”, the WHO explained in a statement last week (23 October). The last dose, which is critical to protect children, is given 18 months after the third dose. This is not in line with the existing immunisation schedule, “in which...