A World First: Vaccine Helps Prevent Hiv Infection -produced In Bangkok!

[sedeflonga]

BANGKOK – For the first time, an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus, a watershed event in the deadly epidemic and a surprising result. Recent failures led many scientists to think such a vaccine might never be possible.

The vaccine cut the risk of becoming infected with HIV by more than 31 percent in the world's largest AIDS vaccine trial of more than 16,000 volunteers in Thailand, researchers announced Thursday in Bangkok.

Even though the benefit is modest, "it's the first evidence that we could have a safe and effective preventive vaccine," Col. Jerome Kim said in a telephone interview. He helped lead the study for the U.S. Army, which sponsored it with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases....

more you can read at http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090924/ap_on_...ed_aids_vaccine

p.s. I tried to post it at news clipping but was not allowed. Can some mod move it there?

regards

[Scott]

Per OP's request the topic has been moved to the news section.

[webfact]

Thailand announces Aids vaccine "breakthrough"

By Deutsche Presse Agentur

Thailandon Thursday announced the first "effective" trial of an HIV/Aids vaccine on some 16,000 volunteers, although the efficacy rate was not sufficient for use.

"It is found that the vaccine has 31.2-per-cent efficacy in reducing the risk of HIV infection," Health Minister Withaya Kaewparadai told a press conference.

"The outcome represents a breakthrough in HIV vaccine development because for the first time ever there is evidence that HIV vaccine has preventative efficacy," he added.

While describing the trial outcome as a positive step forward in the so-far unsuccessful search for an HIV/Aids virus, Withaya acknowledged that the efficacy rate was not high enough to put the vaccine into use.

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos.

Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

The RV 144 combined two vaccines that had previously proved ineffective in immunising people against HIV/Aids - Alvac-HIV and Aidsvax.

The trial, deemed the world's largest HIV vaccine study, was sponsored by the US Army Surgeon General with funding from the National Institute of Health and the US Army Medical Research.

Thailand has an estimated 600,000 people who are living with HIV/Aids. About 400,000 Thais have died of Aids-related diseases since the virus was first detected in the country in the mid-1980s.

Thailand has been deemed a success story for its anti-HIV/Aids programmes, which have included public awareness campaigns, passing out free condoms at brothels and making anti-retro viral drugs available at subsidized prices to many of those infected with the virus.

"Even if an efficacious HIV vaccine may eventually materialize in the future, everybody must protect themselves and avoid risky behavior," Doctor Somchai Chakkrabhand, director-general of Thailand's Department of Disease Control, cautioned.

The two main United Nations agencies dealing with HIV/Aids said they were "optimistic" about the results.

The results, the World Health Organization and the UNAids agency said, were "of great importance."

The 31.2-per-cent vaccine efficacy in preventing HIV infections offered by the dose was deemed by the health agencies to be "modestly protective."

"Much more work, though, has to be done by the principal investigators and a large group of international collaborators to analyse the trial data, understand the protective mechanism, determine the duration of protection, and map next steps," the agencies said.

Also, the UN urged that once an HIV vaccine does become available, "it will need to be universally accessible by all persons at risk."

-- The Nation 2009/09/24

[bkkdawg]

If this is right, this is very good news indeed!

[TAWP]

For first time, AIDS virus vaccine effective in trial

In the largest HIV vaccine trial ever, a combination of two drugs cut risk by nearly a third, researchers say. The trial, conducted in Thailand, raises hope for a breakthrough, but scientists caution that it is unknown whether the treatment would be effective against strains in the U.S., Africa and elsewhere.

The results: New infections occurred in 51 of the 8,197 given vaccine and in 74 of the 8,198 who received dummy shots--a 31% lower risk of infection for the vaccinated group.

More here: http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci...0,1612086.story

[cloudhopper]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos.

Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

Well I admit it's been decades since I studied epidemiology and statistics but those results just don't seem significant to me.

[astral]

It is a start, I suppose,

BUT what about the other 69% who still contracted the disease?????????

[Jingthing]

Perhaps there is something about the vaccine that can be further developed to increase the effectiveness. I agree the results are not conclusive but I am sure it is worth further study to see if there is something to it.

[webfact]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos. Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

That scares me...

Who are these "volunteers"

Second how will they be cured?

Obviously they are infected with HIV.

Edited September 24, 2009 by webfact

[mojaco]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos.

Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

Well I admit it's been decades since I studied epidemiology and statistics but those results just don't seem significant to me.

It has been a long time for me also since I was heavily using probability stastics. But there is certainly an extremely low confidence "r value" that the touted "31%" reduction is significant.

[JetsetBkk]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos. Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

That scares me...

Who are these "volunteers"

Second how will they be cured?

Obviously they are infected with HIV.

I wonder if the volunteers were paid?

For example:

"Here's 5,000 baht if you take this test.

PS. You may die early if it fails"

Nice.

[Jingthing]

There is no cure for HIV, only treatment. What's scary? They chose a high risk population who just continued to live their lives as they would have anyway.

The only ethical problem with this, if there is any, is if the participants were lied to above their HIV risks when taking this untested vaccine. In other words if they were told, don't worry, be happy, you don't ever have to use condoms and have fun share the needles, that would be a problem. There is no way this happened!

Edited September 24, 2009 by Jingthing

[caf]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos.

Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

Well I admit it's been decades since I studied epidemiology and statistics but those results just don't seem significant to me.

I can't even spell epidemiology but as far as statistics is concerned you are right. It is not "statistically significant"

Thailand can't yet claim the hub of scientific discoverries. Nice try I suppose but mathematicains would not buy it.

[cloudhopper]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos. Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

That scares me...

Who where these "volunteers"

Second how will they be cured?

Obviously they are infected with HIV.

I wonder if the volunteers were paid?

For example:

"Here's 5,000 baht if you take this test.

PS. You may die early if it fails"

Nice.

You know it's been an equally long time since I studied ethics, but I can't help but wonder how many of these trials will be done in Sydney, San Francisco or Amsterdam.

[thaihome]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos. Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

That scares me...

Who where these "volunteers"

Second how will they be cured?

Obviously they are infected with HIV.

I wonder if the volunteers were paid?

For example:

"Here's 5,000 baht if you take this test.

PS. You may die early if it fails"

Nice.

Obviously you and others did not read the article before making such asinine comments.

TH

The study tested the combo in HIV-negative Thai men and women ages 18 to 30 at average risk of becoming infected. Half received four "priming" doses of ALVAC and two "boost" doses of AIDSVAX over six months. The others received dummy shots. No one knew who got what until the study ended.

All were given condoms, counseling and treatment for any sexually transmitted infections, and were tested every six months for HIV. Any who became infected were given free treatment with antiviral medicines.

Participants were followed for three years after vaccination ended.

Results: New infections occurred in 51 of the 8,197 given vaccine and in 74 of the 8,198 who received dummy shots. That worked out to a 31 percent lower risk of infection for the vaccine group.

Also,

The study was done in Thailand because U.S. Army scientists did pivotal research in that country when the AIDS epidemic emerged there, isolating virus strains and providing genetic information on them to vaccine makers. The Thai government also strongly supported the idea of doing the study.

[Jingthing]

This is a vaccine test in a country with a major problem with the disease in question. They aren't infecting people with a disease. It is a VACCINE. Its hard to enough to develop a vaccine for this killer without getting overly-neurotic about being 100 percent politically correct.

BTW, yes there have indeed been HIV vaccine trials in first world countries:

The STEP trial began in late 2004 and enrolled 3,000 uninfected people in North and South America and Australia, who will now be monitored but will no receive no additional vaccinations. The HVTN has stopped a second trial of V520 in South Africa.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article....e-hopeful-fails

Edited September 24, 2009 by Jingthing

[caf]

There is no cure for HIV, only treatment. What's scary? They chose a high risk population who just continued to live their lives as they would have anyway.

The Op is saying there is a cure. "an experimental vaccine has prevented infection with the AIDS virus"

The falsity of the argument is that it is statistically not significant. The challenge to the Op should be on those grounds. Saying there is no cure, which I agree at the moment there is not, is like saying

"oh yes he did" " oh no he didn't" " oh yes he did not" in true panto style.

Challenge a scientific comment with a scientific rebutal ( which one poster has already done)

BTW I hope a cure will be found

[JetsetBkk]

Obviously you and others did not read the article before making such asinine comments.

TH

<snip>

Quite correct - keeps the forum active though, eh?

[imjustagirl]

I may be being negative here but isn't this a bit of a loaded gun? Being given a vaccine that is only 50% effective is surely very dangerous. The report says that if they can get efficacy proven to be above 50% then they will give to the placebo group too. Will this not undo all the work that has gone into aids prevention through safe sex and clean needles.... i can just see it....'hey no worries, i have been vaccinated!' .... 1 year on a massive leap in cases as 100% dont bother with safe sex and 50% become infected.

A step forward definately but releasing at 50% effective is crazy IMHO!

[Jingthing]

Bull. If they have safe vaccine that is 50 percent effective people will be lining up for it, including me. You tell people it is 50 percent effective. If they don't understand what that means, that is a matter for Darwin. I want the choice!

[caf]

This is a vaccine test in a country with a major problem with the disease in question. They aren't infecting people with a disease. It is a VACCINE. Its hard to enough to develop a vaccine for this killer without getting overly-neurotic about being 100 percent politically correct.

BTW, yes there have indeed been HIV vaccine trials in first world countries:

The STEP trial began in late 2004 and enrolled 3,000 uninfected people in North and South America and Australia, who will now be monitored but will no receive no additional vaccinations. The HVTN has stopped a second trial of V520 in South Africa.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article....e-hopeful-fails

A vaccine is an innoculation of a virulent

You introduce a "harmless" amount to "invoke an antibody" but vaccines do infect. Google it or read your French history

There is a place for vaccines. The point of this topic however is that it is not a world first for Thailand. It's just another weekly report without substance.

As I said I sincerly hope this disease can be eradicated eventually but sure as eggs are eggs it won't be by thailand with its track record.

[JetsetBkk]

"This result is tantalisingly encouraging. The numbers are small and the difference may have been due to chance, but this finding is the first positive news in the Aids vaccine field for a decade," said Dr Richard Horton, editor of the Lancet medical journal.

A difference of just 23. Just "noise". How many of the volunteers changed their life styles in the 3 years of this trial?

[Jingthing]

I think this is beginning of the real deal. It is more than noise. Now the scientists refine this and try for better results. This was the first time ever to get any encouraging results. And it started in Thailand. Thanks to all the Thai volunteers.

[imjustagirl]

Bull. If they have safe vaccine that is 50 percent effective people will be lining up for it, including me. You tell people it is 50 percent effective. If they don't understand what that means, that is a matter for Darwin. I want the choice!

We can always depend on stupidity of people and many will not understand that it does not provide full cover i'm sure. Heres hoping they maintain a push on safe sex with emphasis that the vaccine at 50% is a last line of defense - not a first choice!

[britmaveric]

Anything that decreases the chances by a 1/3 is def worthwhile and will save lives.

[cloudhopper]

If they don't understand what that means, that is a matter for Darwin.

Good one Jing!

"This result is tantalisingly encouraging. The numbers are small and the difference may have been due to chance, but this finding is the first positive news in the Aids vaccine field for a decade," said Dr Richard Horton, editor of the Lancet medical journal.

A difference of just 23. Just "noise". How many of the volunteers changed their life styles in the 3 years of this trial?

If (no, I still haven't, nor intend to, read the original Nation article) they also monitored the incidence of other STD's then that could shed some light on the other variables like compliance etc. and improve the quality of the results somewhat.

[dantilley]

The results were part of the HIV Vaccine Trial Phase III on 16,402 Thai volunteers in Chonburi and Rayong provinces. Half of the volunteers were given the RV 144 vaccine in 2006, and the other half received placebos. Of those who got placebos, 74 became infected, while only 51 of those who got the vaccines did.

That scares me...

Who are these "volunteers"

Second how will they be cured?

Obviously they are infected with HIV.

It scares you? Why?

They won't be cured, and it's not as if they said "we have a vaccine for which we have no idea if it will work, plus you have 50% chance it will be a placebo anyway, now take it and then come back next week to get injected with HIV". No-one in their right minds, let alone 16,000 people, would agree to that, which it seems you're alluding to. 16,000 people took the vaccine (or, rather, 8,000 people had the vaccine and 8,000 had a placebo) and then just forgot about it and carried on living their lives. Now, 3 years later the stats are in.

Edited September 24, 2009 by dantilley

[aeon]

"The study tested the combo in HIV-negative Thai men and women ages 18 to 30 at average risk of becoming infected. Half received four priming doses of ALVAC and two boost doses of AIDSVAX over six months. The other half received dummy shots. No one knew who got what until the study ended.

All were given condoms, counseling and treatment for any sexually transmitted infections, and were tested every six months for HIV. Any who became infected were given free treatment with antiviral medicines.

Participants were followed for three years after vaccination ended.

The results: New infections occurred in 51 of the 8,197 given vaccine and in 74 of the 8,198 who received dummy shots--a 31% lower risk of infection for the vaccinated group."

is that reliable? even if all 16000 had sex with the same infected person you would get random results...

[TAWP]

The difference is well outside the scope of random noise, trust me.

[teatree]

Vaccines routinely kill people

Homeless people die after bird flu vaccine trial in Poland

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/...-in-Poland.html