DRC Launches Ebola Vaccine Trial as Cases Surpass 9,700
(MENAFN) Health officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo have begun testing a new Ebola vaccine as the fast-moving epidemic continues to defy containment, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
The first volunteers in the trial, called Tumaini, a Swahili word meaning hope, received their doses in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, according to the WHO’s Africa regional office.
The WHO described the launch as “a major step in the fight against Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus strain,” which is spreading rapidly across geographic boundaries.
The study will assess candidate vaccines against Ebola strains caused by the Bundibugyo virus among contacts of confirmed cases. No vaccine against the Bundibugyo strain has been approved, and the outbreak was first declared in Congo in May. According to the WHO, the trial rests on scientific rigor, transparency, ethical principles, informed consent and community engagement.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on US social media company X: “This trial will help us understand whether any of the vaccine candidates designed for Bundibugyo virus work,”
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is coordinating the trial, with support from the WHO, the Congolese Health Ministry and partners.
In August, Congo received 70,000 doses of Ervebo from the global Ebola virus disease vaccine stockpile for use in the outbreak. That vaccine is approved against the Zaire Ebola virus.
Confirmed cases in Congo have now surpassed 9,700, including more than 4,690 deaths, according to the latest data from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). The disease has reached eight provinces: Haut-Uele, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Bas-Uele, Tshopo, South-Ubangi and North Ubangi.
Health officials said the spread to other countries in the region is complicating containment efforts. Kenya has reported nine confirmed cases, including two deaths, while Nigeria confirmed its first case earlier this week, believed to have been imported from Congo.
The first volunteers in the trial, called Tumaini, a Swahili word meaning hope, received their doses in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, according to the WHO’s Africa regional office.
The WHO described the launch as “a major step in the fight against Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus strain,” which is spreading rapidly across geographic boundaries.
The study will assess candidate vaccines against Ebola strains caused by the Bundibugyo virus among contacts of confirmed cases. No vaccine against the Bundibugyo strain has been approved, and the outbreak was first declared in Congo in May. According to the WHO, the trial rests on scientific rigor, transparency, ethical principles, informed consent and community engagement.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on US social media company X: “This trial will help us understand whether any of the vaccine candidates designed for Bundibugyo virus work,”
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is coordinating the trial, with support from the WHO, the Congolese Health Ministry and partners.
In August, Congo received 70,000 doses of Ervebo from the global Ebola virus disease vaccine stockpile for use in the outbreak. That vaccine is approved against the Zaire Ebola virus.
Confirmed cases in Congo have now surpassed 9,700, including more than 4,690 deaths, according to the latest data from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). The disease has reached eight provinces: Haut-Uele, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Bas-Uele, Tshopo, South-Ubangi and North Ubangi.
Health officials said the spread to other countries in the region is complicating containment efforts. Kenya has reported nine confirmed cases, including two deaths, while Nigeria confirmed its first case earlier this week, believed to have been imported from Congo.
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