Lassa fever vaccines may be available by 2030 – Scientists

Scientists across the West African sub-region have said licensed vaccines for the prevention of Lassa fever may be developed before year 2030.

They stated this while fielding questions from newsmen during the ‘Enable Lassa Programme Workshop’ organisied by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) in Abuja.

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The Enable study, which is funded by the CEPI, is aimed at providing a better understanding of the true disease burden of Lassa fever across West Africa, where there are regular outbreaks, and to guide the development of vaccines against the disease.

The national coordinator of the CEPI Enable Study Nigeria, Prof Bola Olayinka, said they were hoping for a vaccine before 2030, adding that already, some vaccine candidates have been developed and only need to go through clinical trials to check for their safety. 

She said Nigeria was one of the endemic countries for Lassa fever, and despite experiencing it for the past 52 years, there is still no defined treatment and therapeutics for the disease.