DR Congo expands Ebola vaccination to Ituri, over 3,700 people vaccinated

The Democratic Republic of Congo has expanded its Ebola vaccination campaign to Ituri Province, the outbreak's epicenter in the eastern part of the country. Over 3,700 individuals have received the Ervebo vaccine, part of the novel BRAVO study. Conducted by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in collaboration with local health authorities and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), this study aims to vaccinate around 20,000 frontline workers in Ituri and North Kivu provinces, which are most affected by the outbreak.

The primary objective of BRAVO is to assess the potential effectiveness of Ervebo against the Bundibugyo virus, which is causing the current outbreak. While Ervebo was developed for the Zaire strain of Ebola, its efficacy against Bundibugyo remains unproven. The International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision approved the allocation of 70,000 doses of Ervebo to the DRC in August, with 50,000 doses designated for health workers and frontline personnel, and 20,000 for a Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate the vaccine's impact against Bundibugyo.

As of mid-September, the DRC had received 16,520 doses of Ervebo. The vaccination process commenced on August 27 under a protocol-governed program targeting high-risk individuals. As of September 17, a total of 3,771 people had been vaccinated, including 3,063 in Tshopo Province and 708 in Bas-Uele Province. The BRAVO study, expected to last nine to 12 months with three months of vaccination and six months of participant follow-up, represents an additional step in generating evidence about the vaccine's potential effectiveness against Bundibugyo.

A separate Phase 3 trial, utilizing a randomized ring-vaccination strategy, is also planned to more rigorously assess Ervebo's efficacy. The DRC government has reported 7,541 confirmed Ebola cases, including 3,639 deaths, resulting in a case fatality rate of 48.3 percent. Of these, 1,823 patients have recovered. This Ebola outbreak, declared in May, is the largest and deadliest ever recorded in the DRC and the second-largest globally, following the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic.