Vaccine malaria breakthrough

After decades of research, scientists have finally succeeded in creating a vaccine against malaria. The experimental vaccine is still being tested and it is claimed that it currently protects around 50 per cent of children who receive it. According to the researchers even this could mean that potentially millions of cases of malaria in children could be prevented. Tsiri Agbenyega, who has been heading up the research programme at Agopo Presbyterian Hospital in Ghana, says, ‘This is remarkable when you think there has never been a successful vaccine against malaria.’

Almost half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria and according to the World Health Organisation, there are around 225 million cases each year and almost 800,000 deaths, most of them children. According to WHO, in Africa one in five children die from malaria.

The vaccine was tested with two age groups: six -12 weeks and five -17 months. In the latter age group, the vaccine was found to be 50 per cent effective against the Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasite, which is carried by mosquitos. Results from the six-12 weeks age group will be released next year.