Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2008. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
|
|
Wall Street Journal - July 18, 2008
Marilyn Chase, marilyn.chase@wsj.com
Thursday's move, the latest setback in a field pummeled by recent failures, is a sober recognition that questions still trump answers in the quest to prevent the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, a unit of NIH, cited concern about similarities between his agency's experimental vaccine and Merck's, which was shown to have made some who received it more susceptible to the disease. He also cited the continuing lack of knowledge about how to elicit immunity against the lethal virus.
Dr. Fauci is soliciting proposals for a "leaner, meaner" study with modest goals that would be a fraction of the size and cost of the original plan, which called for studying 8,500 people world-wide at a cost estimated at roughly $140 million.
More recently, the plan was scaled back to 2,400 volunteers at a cost of approximately $63 million. But Dr. Fauci said the trial should be even smaller, costing perhaps $38 million to $45 million. It wouldn't seek the ultimate goal of any vaccine-preventing disease, but instead aim to lower the level of virus in the blood.
"Tony's doing the right thing, resetting expectations," said Seth Berkley of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative.
The canceled study, called PAVE-100, was seen as a promising test of the first truly global vaccine created by Dr. Gary Nabel of the NIH. The vaccine uses pieces of virus strains from around the world to spark immunity, but also uses the cold virus Adenovirus-5 to carry part of the vaccine's payload.
That Adenovirus-5 ingredient was implicated in the failure of the Merck vaccine test, in which people who got the vaccine became infected at a higher rate than those given a placebo, or dummy shot. Those shown to be most at risk were men previously exposed to the Ad-5 cold virus and those who weren't circumcised.
AIDS advocates scrambled to avoid a collapse of confidence -- and investment -- in pursuit of an AIDS vaccine, which is seen as the only way to end a deadly scourge affecting 33 million people.
"After a year of public hand-wringing and unproductive public attacks on the search for an AIDS vaccine, it is essential this decision not be viewed as a vote of no-confidence," said Mitchell Warren, executive director of the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition in New York.
"We're not going away," Dr. Fauci said. "I don't see this as chilling, but realistic."
080718
WJ080706
Copyright © 2008 - The Wall Street Journal. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the WSJ Permissions Desk.
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Boehringer Ingelheim, Bridgestone/Firestone Charitable Trust, Elton John AIDS Foundation UK, the National Library of Medicine, AIDS Walk of Orange County, and donations from users like you.
Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2008. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 2008. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .