RTS,S Malaria Vaccine Selected as One of the Top Ten Medical Breakthroughs in 2011

Time magazine was the first publication to announce its decision to include the malaria vaccine in its New Year list of medical breakthroughs. A few days later, the prestigious scientific journal Science also recognised the advance. Both publications chose the RTS,S malaria vaccine as one of the ten most important scientific advances of 2011. The decision made by these two influential publications reflects the scientific community's recognition of a vaccine which, despite its moderate effectiveness, nonetheless represents an unprecedented breakthrough in the complex struggle against the parasite that causes over 650,000 deaths a year. 

The choice of the RTS,S vaccine as one of the top scientific achievements of 2011 comes after the announcement last October of the preliminary results of Phase III clinical trials with the vaccine candidate. Phase III is the final stage in the approval process that may lead to a recommendation on the use of the vaccine by the World Health Organization. The initial results of the trial currently being conducted at eleven sites in seven African countries demonstrated that three doses of RTS,S reduced the risk of malaria by 56% in children aged 5 to 17 months.

Pedro Alonso, Director of ISGlobal,  commented on the inclusion of the vaccine in the lists saying, "The results published in 2011 are the fruit of over ten years of work and open up a promising avenue for future work. Recognition from these publications, which have enormous global influence, highlights the value of research and innovation in developing new tools to fight malaria, a disease that affects 216 million people every year". 

In 2004, Science included the work of the Manhiça Health Research Center (CISM) on the development of the vaccine as one of the year's top medical breakthroughs. In the article explaining the inclusion of the RTS,S on the 2011 list, Science emphasised the vaccine's moderate effectiveness, comparing it to the proverbial glass we can choose to see as either half full or half empty depending on our point of view. The article goes on to say, "While it is true that this vaccine alone will not eliminate malaria and it may only be used in a limited number of areas, at least the researchers have shown that it is possible". The Time magazine article made the point that "While the initial findings were encouraging, public health officials now have to decide whether they are strong enough to warrant widespread immunization where malaria is endemic". 

Links

Article in Science

Time magazine article

First results from the Phase III clinical trials

RTS,S malaria vaccine: frequently asked questions