A vaccine against the deadly Ebola virus has led to 100 per
cent protection and could transform the way Ebola is
tackled, preliminary results suggest.
BBC reported that there were no proven drugs or vaccines
against the virus at the start of the largest outbreak of Ebola
in history, which began in Guinea in December 2013.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said the findings,
being published in the Lancet, could be a “game-changer.”
Experts said the results were “remarkable.”
This trial centred on the VSV-EBOV vaccine, which was
started by the Public Health Agency of Canada and then
developed by the pharmaceutical company Merck.
It combined a fragment of the Ebola virus with another safer
virus in order to train the immune system to beat Ebola.
A unique clinical trial took place in Guinea. When a patient
was discovered, their friends, neighbours and family were
vaccinated to create a “protective ring” of immunity.
This could be the breakthrough the world has been waiting
for. There is caution as the results are still preliminary, with
more data coming in.
But officials at the WHO believe the effectiveness of the
vaccine will end up being between 75 per cent and 100 per
cent.
If such a vaccine was available 18 months ago then
thousands of lives could have been saved.
There are still other vaccines being trialed – notably from
GSK and Johnson & Johnson – although as the number of
cases continues to fall, it is becoming increasingly difficult to
prove how effective they are. Ebola will inevitably come
again.
The hope now is that the legacy of this unprecedented
outbreak will be a vaccine that means a tragedy of this scale
can never be repeated.
One hundred patients were identified in the trial between
April and July and then close contacts were either vaccinated
immediately, or three weeks later.
In the 2,014 close contacts who were vaccinated
immediately there were no subsequent cases of Ebola.
In those vaccinated later there were 16 cases, according to
the results published in the Lancet medical journal.
The WHO says it is so far 100 per cent effective, although
that figure may change as more data is collected.
Close contacts of Ebola patients in Guinea will now be
vaccinated immediately. And since the vaccine has been
shown to be safe, that process will also be extended to
include children.
Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) is involved with this
research, and is part of a parallel trial for frontline
healthcare workers. Medical director, Bertrand Draguez said
the Lancet results should spur instant action.
Marie-Paule Kieny, an assistant director general at the WHO
told BBC News: “It is certainly promising. We have seen that
where rings have been vaccinated, the transmission has
stopped.
“Prior to vaccination there were cases, cases, cases. The
vaccine arrives and 10 days later the cases are flat. It could
be a game-changer because previously there was nothing,
despite the disease being identified 40 years ago.”
Prof. John Edmunds, from the London School of Hygiene
and Tropical Medicine, helped design the trial: “The
development has been at an absolutely unprecedented
speed.
“This is very good news, these are very significant results,
the epidemic is not over and this shows we have another
potential weapon.”
Dr. Jeremy Farrar, the director of the Wellcome Trust
medical charity, said this was a “remarkable result” and was
the product of international collaboration.
He added: “Our hope is that this vaccine will now help bring this epidemic to an end
and be available for the inevitable future Ebola.

Source: www.ngrguardiannews.com/2015/08/ebola-vaccine-is-potential-game-changer/

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