africatodayonline.blogspot.com -
Dr. Stephen Kennedy, the Liberian lead investigator for the study, was among the first people to volunteer for the vaccine trial, getting his injection in front of the media. Similarly, in Guinea, authorities started the study by injecting a series of prominent officials, including the head of the country's Ebola response.
The outreach worked in Liberia, where more than 700 people have volunteered, well beyond the 600 required, according to Kennedy.
"All of the reservations I have were explained, my doubts were cleared," B. Emmanuel Lansana, a physician's assistant who was the first person to participate in the study, said after he received his injection.
"We've had no trouble with enrollment," said Dr. Clifford Lane, the clinical director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which is helping to run the study. "This study has been pulled off in an extraordinarily professional, competent and efficient way."
Liberia had not seen an Ebola case in weeks before one was confirmed Friday. The low level of the disease means that the trial's next phase may be moved to Sierra Leone or Guinea where the disease is more prevalent, Lane said. Phase 3 tests whether the vaccines actually prevent Ebola, so it must be done in a place with active transmission.
Doubters remain in Liberia, of course. A community chalkboard at a busy intersection in Monrovia recently read: "Ebola vaccines 1 vs. Public fear 4."
