This is the story of how a Canadian vaccine for Ebola went from 鈥渙rphan鈥� to international superstar overnight. Orphans are vaccines that are known to work, but whose cost is prohibitive. Usually, only a handful of people would benefit, and pharmaceutical companies can鈥檛 make money on small production runs.
The new vaccine was developed by a team at the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg. Their achievement might be sa国际传媒鈥檚 most significant contribution to medicine since Banting and Best discovered insulin.
Work started a decade ago, after Ebola began spreading across West Africa. The ailment is a viral infection, with a death rate as high as 90 per cent.
In the early stages, Ebola moved slowly. As a result, it was judged insufficiently threatening to justify commercial development of a vaccine.
In addition, another uncomfortable reality reared its head. The disease was confined to Africa at first. There were no cases further afield to demand attention.
However, that all changed two years ago. Ebola began showing up in European countries, and subsequently in the U.S.
The number of patients outside Africa never exceeded a handful. By the end of last year, there had been 11 reports of the disease in the U.S., none at all in sa国际传媒. But the effect of Ebola crossing the Atlantic was electric. Suddenly, there was a market for the Canadian vaccine.
Staff in Winnipeg partnered with a production company in California, and this year, trials were conducted in Guinea. The results were a stunning success.
About 2,000 volunteers were given the vaccine. These were all people who had been in direct contact with patients infected with the disease. None contracted Ebola.
It鈥檚 unlikely this 100 per cent success rate will hold up indefinitely. A second trial is under way in Liberia. It remains to be seen how that turns out.
But there are two conclusions we should draw. First, whatever the outcome might be, this was a brilliant performance by the lab in Winnipeg. Thousands of people around the world will owe their lives to Canadian researchers.
Second, the initial difficulty in bringing this vaccine to production points to a deeper problem. The private sector is often reluctant to experiment with new vaccines.
Partly there is the risk of being stuck with an orphan. That means companies won鈥檛 commit to a research program until it鈥檚 clear the disease presents a serious threat. By then, of course, it鈥檚 often too late. In the case of Ebola, 11,000 victims died before the new vaccine became available.
Private companies also fear lawsuits. Vaccines almost invariably have side-effects. While the vast majority of recipients will benefit, there is always the risk that a few could suffer.
But a large part of the world鈥檚 supply of vaccines is produced in the U.S., where juries frequently award massive financial damages in health-related lawsuits. Most pharmaceutical firms believe the legal liability in this field is just too great.
The solution seems obvious. Western countries with deep pockets should fund vaccine development in public laboratories.
The past three decades have seen a whole host of new infectious diseases arrive on the scene: HIV/AIDS, Legionnaires鈥� disease, H1N1 flu, West Nile virus, Norovirus, Lassa fever and now, Ebola.
All of these began with small outbreaks that triggered a minimal response. We have to do better.
What happened in Winnipeg is a success story. But it is also a warning. If we wait for the private sector to get involved, we might wait too long.
We need a co-ordinated strategy to commission work in government facilities that aren鈥檛 constrained by profit margins. And we need it now, before the next potential epidemic catches us unprepared.
