New malaria hope found in Kenya trials

A successful vaccine against malaria in children has been announced following clinical trials.

The PATH malaria vaccine initiative (MVI), which assists the development of future vaccines, has identified a vaccine called RTS,S.

It proved effective against the disease during successful trials on infants in Mozambique and will soon enter its final testing stages before becoming implemented in the future fight against the killer disease.

Dr Armstrong Mwenda, a government doctor based in Kiambu District Hospital in Kenya, told the Nairobi Business Daily: "If the vaccine becomes successful, it will be a milestone in eradicating malaria from Kenya and indeed the whole world."

The drug, which has been developed in partnership with Glaxo SmithKline and MVI, will undergo further trials later in 2008, with a view to worldwide license in 2011.

During the trials 214 infants were given the new vaccination. The risk of infection reduced by 65 per cent over three months, however there were some side-effects of pain and swelling.

The World Health Organisation estimates that malaria infects about half a billion people worldwide and kills more than a million people each year.