US-funded vaccine trial cancelled in Guinea-Bissau
Accusations of unethical and neocolonial practices led to the cancellation of a hepatitis B vaccine trial on newborns.
A planned US-funded trial of a hepatitis B vaccine on newborn babies in Guinea-Bissau has been cancelled. Police seized a batch of vaccines from the Bandim Health Project research centre, which has operated in the country since 1978. The trial faced accusations of being unethical and neocolonial.
The proposed study drew international criticism for planning to withhold a World Health Organization-recommended vaccine from half of the participating newborns. Some public health experts questioned whether vulnerable populations in African countries were being subjected to risks not accepted in wealthier nations. The US Health Secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, who has expressed scepticism about vaccines, funded the trial.
Guinea-Bissau, like neighbouring countries, typically waits until babies are six weeks old for hepatitis B vaccinations, while the WHO recommends vaccination at birth. The BBC has sought comment from the US department of health and human services regarding the cancelled trial.
Why it mattersNewborn babies in Guinea-Bissau were to be the subjects of a controversial vaccine trial that has now been cancelled.