An effective new malaria vaccine Mosquirix – rolled out for the first time in Cameroon in Africa on January 22 – could reduce the risk of all-cause mortality in children by 13%.
World Health Organisation (WHO) officials said the immunisation campaign for the vaccine (technically RTS,S/ AS01) ‘marks a historic moment in the fight against the mosquito-borne disease, one of the most life-threatening infections in the world’.
The vaccine drive in Cameroon is the first official public launch of the Mosquirix vaccine outside clinical trials, which have shown a 13% reduction in all-cause mortality, including malaria- related deaths, in children eligible to receive it.
At least 20 African countries have made plans for malaria vaccine rollouts as cases and deaths related to the disease continue to climb. ‘The majority of malaria cases occur on the continent, with an estimated half- million deaths among children each year,’ noted medicalnewstoday.com.
Mohammed Abdulaziz, head of disease control and prevention at Africa CDC, told statnews.com: ‘We are not just witnessing, but actively participating in a transformative chapter in African public health history.
‘For a long time, we have been waiting for a day like this. It brings more than just hope. It brings a reduction in the mortality and morbidity associated with malaria.’
The vaccine rollout arrives as mosquitos have become increasingly resistant to insecticides and the Plasmodium parasite that causes malaria has become resistant to anti- malarial drugs.
Mosquirix is a recombinant protein-based vaccine targeting the Plasmodium parasite before it invades and infects red blood cells. A 2023 study noted a pilot implementation of the vaccine in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi was associated with a 30% reduction in hospital admissions for severe malaria.
The rollout in Cameroon now signals an opportunity to test the vaccine’s effectiveness on a larger scale in real- world settings.
Dr Monica Gandhi, an infectious diseases specialist with the University of California-San Francisco commented: ‘The burden of malaria is so high in Africa, with over 95% of fatal cases occurring in that continent, that even a moderately effective vaccine would have a huge impact on the epidemic.
‘The main disadvantage of this vaccine is that it is likely to have to be given annually for full effect.’
