Medicina Pulmonar e Respiratória

How far can Effective HIV Vaccine amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic?

Abstract

Seyi Samson Enitan*

The pursuit of a safe and effective HIV vaccine holds lifesaving potential for people globally; unfortunately, a number of ongoing HIV vaccine safety and efficacy trials are being shortened paused or postponed amidst the Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) crisis. The COVID-19 outbreak that started in Wuhan, megacity of China late December, 2019, has spread to 188 countries and territories, with more than 9 million total confirmed cases and 470,061 total deaths globally as at 22 June, 2020 and still counting. Currently, no approved vaccines exist to prevent infection with the novel Coronavirus; however, the impact of the pandemic has been enormous with devastating effects on the global health and economy, with many countries introducing stringent response measures to de-escalate the spread of the virus. Recruiting and retaining volunteers for HIV vaccine trials this period has become very challenging due to a lot of factors including fear of potential exposure to the new coronavirus, ethical issues and safety concerns. The protection and safety of participants and clinic staff remain a priority for HIV vaccine investigators worldwide. They are at the moment making conscious efforts to implement measures necessary to prevent potential exposure and transmission of COVID-19 among study participants and clinic staff in various study sites. To this end, the pursuit of a safe and effective HIV vaccine must continue to follow global best practices, devoid of any form of political, religious or racial bias. The pursuit for vaccine to curb the HIV pandemic is on and should not be at the expense of ethical principles such as informed consent and medical privacy. Despite the draw backs experienced so far, it is very important that virologists and vaccine developers do not relent in their quest for safe and effective HIV vaccines. Instead, they should redouble their efforts and build on past lessons. The scientific integrity of each clinical trial must not be compromised for political or economic gains, rather the World Health Organization with other important stakeholders must continue to monitor and ameliorate the impact of COVID-19 on the conduct of the early and large-scale HIV vaccine clinical trials globally.