Guinea-Bissau hepatitis B newborn vaccine trial halted

The lead researcher said the proposed hepatitis B vaccine trial in newborns in Guinea-Bissau “will not move forward” because researchers had not received necessary government approval, The Guardian reported. The study was to receive $1.6m from the CDC and another $1.6m from private partners, according to the newspaper.

MedPage Today reported that judicial police raided the researchers’ offices and seized vaccine doses. The Guardian said Guinea-Bissau’s government now has control of the vaccines after authorities searched the Bandim Health Project offices on Monday. Guinea-Bissau plans to offer a universal hepatitis B birth dose in 2028, The Guardian reported. The CDC did not respond to questions about whether its funding would instead support vaccination of newborns.