WHO Recommends new Malaria Vaccine for children which is cost-effective and efficient

The R21/Matrix-MTM malaria vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and the Serum Institute of India, leveraging Novavax’s adjuvant technology, has been recommended for use by the World Health Organization (WHO) after meeting required safety, quality and effectiveness standards.

The vaccine has recently reached the primary one-year endpoint in a pivotal large-scale Phase III clinical trial including 4,800 children across Burkina Faso, Kenya, Mali and Tanzania. The Phase III trial results are under peer review before publication.

The vaccine was well tolerated with a good safety profile. The efficacy of the vaccine over 12 months was 75% (95% CI 71-79; p<0.001) at sites with high seasonal malaria transmission and 68% (61-74; p<0.001) at the sites with more perennial transmission using standard age-based administration.