Global health officials have been urged to widen the use of an existing Ebola vaccine in DR Congo following reports it may provide protection against a strain it was not designed to target. The Bundibugyo strain — for which there is currently no vaccine — has killed more than 5,300 people in the country’s largest-ever outbreak. Medical charity Doctors Without Borders said restrictions on using Ervebo, developed by Merck for use against a prior Ebola strain, should be lifted so more people at risk, including young children, can be vaccinated.
The charity said DR Congo requested 500,000 doses of Ervebo, but only 70,000 were released. The World Health Organization recommends limiting its use against Bundibugyo to research studies because its effects remain unproven. Doctors Without Borders said early observations of fewer infections and deaths among previously vaccinated people justified wider use. A larger release from the global stockpile requires backing from the WHO’s vaccine advisers, who meet next week.
— Ruben Nyanguila
