New malaria vaccine with 75% efficacy a potential game-changer

A new R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine shows 75% efficacy in a Phase2b trial – a potentially game-changing result compared to the WHO-approved RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S) vaccine. The WHO has said it will continue with the rollout of its approved RTS,S vaccine, despite the promise of a new malaria vaccine candidate, the R21/Matrix-M, that shows an efficacy of 75% in a recent Phase 2b trial – nearly double that of the recently-approved RTS,S vaccine. At a WHO press briefing, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO’s regional director for Africa, welcomed the findings on the R21/Matrix-M vaccine, which were published in the Lancet, but said the rollout of the RTS,S vaccine would continue. The R21/Matrix M vaccine candidate still must be tested clinically against the RTS,S vaccine in a large-scale field setting, Moeti said. “We can look forward to – eventually once the data is finalized – the vaccine going through all the phases of clinical trials, and then a...