New TB Vaccine Could Be Available in Malawi by 2029
If approved, the vaccine would protect adolescents, adults and those with multi-drug resistant TB.
BLANTYRE, Malawi— A new tuberculosis vaccine called M72 could be available in Malawi by 2029, pending successful trials, the Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Programme (MLW) announced, writes Chrissie Hazimthera Mainjeni.
The development comes as TB remains the leading cause of death globally.
The World Health Organization reports that of the 10.8 million people who fell ill with TB in 2023, approximately 25,000 were Malawians.
"The current BCG vaccine administered to newborns loses its effectiveness at 14 years," MLW Senior Clinical Research Officer Patrick Goodson said during an interactive meeting with the Journalist In Residence Programme in Blantyre.
The M72 trial's third phase is underway at the Gateway MLW Clinic in Blantyre and University of Carolina at Kamuzu Central Hospital in Lilongwe.
Similar trials are being conducted in South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique, Kenya, Indonesia and Vietnam.
The four-year global trial aims to recruit 20,000 participants aged 15-44, with Malawi targeting 692 participants. As of Oct. 7, 2024, 30 participants have been recruited in Malawi.
"We expect to recruit more in the next two years. The other two years will be for follow-ups before we come up with our recommendations to the WHO," Goodson said.
Professor Henry Mwandumba, National Principal Investigator for the M72 vaccine trial in Malawi, emphasized TB's continued threat to public health.
"We have now taken the significant step of launching this TB vaccine trial in Malawi. We are proud to contribute to this clinical trial," he said.
The British multinational pharmaceutical company-manufactured vaccine trial is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Research Institute and Wellcome.
If approved, the vaccine would protect adolescents, adults and those with multi-drug resistant TB.