Early Clinical Trials of New Malaria Vaccine Show Strong Protection Against Disease
Voice of America
A new type of malaria vaccine is showing promise in early studies.
The vaccine combines live malaria parasites and antimalarial drugs to produce immunity without causing disease. If larger-scale trials continue to show success, the vaccine could eventually help to reduce the 200 million-plus malaria cases recorded every year. Malaria, a disease caused by parasites that are spread by mosquitoes, kills over 400,000 people a year. Although the World Health Organization estimates that almost half the world's population is at risk of contracting malaria, most cases and deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa and in children under age 5. The symptoms associated with malaria are typically flu-like and, if left untreated, can lead to organ failure and death. Despite the facts that the disease is treatable with drugs and preventable with insecticide-treated bed nets, the decline of cases has stalled in the past few years. One vaccine with limited effectiveness is undergoing a pilot program while another is in later-stage trials, but none is in widespread use yet.Young women and their coach Dioguinho bring it in for a team huddle at the start of a football training session run by the Bola de Ouro social program, at the Complexo da Alemao favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 16, 2024. Agatha strikes a ball during a football training session run by the Bola de Ouro social program, at the Complexo da Alemao favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 16, 2024. Relatives watch a football training session for young women run by the Bola de Ouro social program at the Complexo da Alemao favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 16, 2024.
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