First participants enrol in TB vaccine trial

The Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) in Mtubatuba recently screened the first eight participants to be enrolled in its M72 TB vaccine phase 3 clinical trial.

This as World TB Day was commemorated on Sunday, 24 March.

The institute said it aims to enrol 1 000 participants over the next year, targeting multiple areas in northern KZN where it is known there is a high rate of new TB infections.

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The institute said M72 could be a game-changer for TB control globally and if the trial shows the vaccine is well-tolerated and effective, it would be the first vaccine to help prevent TB in adolescents and adults, and the first new TB vaccine in over 100 years.

AHRI said the trial will ultimately enrol up to 20 000 participants at around 60 trial sites in seven countries — South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Kenya, Indonesia and Vietnam.

“This is critical work. It is clear from modelling studies that if we do not have an effective vaccine that prevents TB in adolescents and adults – as BCG does in babies – we will not control the TB epidemic,” said AHRI executive director Prof Willem Hanekom.

He explained that the trial would take about six years, with preliminary results expected around 2028.

He also said that since, in South Africa, about 70% of people with TB live with HIV, ultimately this segment of people would be included in the trials.

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