Posted on Oct 3, 2023
A 'dream' come true: Now there are 2 vaccines to slash the frightful toll of malaria
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https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/10/03/ [login to see] /a-dream-come-true-now-there-are-2-vaccines-to-slash-the-frightful-toll-of-malari
"As a malaria researcher," says WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, "I used to dream of the day when we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria. Now we have two."
They're the first vaccines designed to work against a human parasite.
The first, called RTS,S, was unveiled almost two years ago. The second one, recommended by the World Health Organization this week, is called R21/Matrix-M and is intended for children between 5 and 36 months, who are among the most vulnerable to the disease.
"A vaccine recruits the human immune system to fight the parasite as soon as it enters the body," says Dyann Wirth, chair of the WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Group. "A vaccinated person is poised to fight off the infection at its earliest stage."
"As a malaria researcher," says WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, "I used to dream of the day when we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria. Now we have two."
They're the first vaccines designed to work against a human parasite.
The first, called RTS,S, was unveiled almost two years ago. The second one, recommended by the World Health Organization this week, is called R21/Matrix-M and is intended for children between 5 and 36 months, who are among the most vulnerable to the disease.
"A vaccine recruits the human immune system to fight the parasite as soon as it enters the body," says Dyann Wirth, chair of the WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Group. "A vaccinated person is poised to fight off the infection at its earliest stage."
A 'dream' come true: Now there are 2 vaccines to slash the frightful toll of malaria
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