Guinea-Bissau halts vaccine study backed by the Trump administration

The foreign minister of Guinea-Bissau has announced that his government has halted a study funded by the Trump administration, which was intended to assess the side effects of the life-saving hepatitis B vaccine, including potential connections to autism.

The West African nation, among the least affluent in the region, faces significant challenges with high hepatitis B prevalence. The proposed study has sparked considerable concern among scientists and global health organizations, as only half of the newborns participating in the trial would receive the vaccine at birth. Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Ghebreyesus, stated that it was not ethical.

Last month, Guinea-Bissau suspended the trial while awaiting an ethical review. Critics argued that it was being utilized to examine theories connecting vaccines to autism, which have been long advocated by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., yet are contradicted by scientific evidence.

In an interview on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Joao Bernardo Vieira announced that the study had been concluded, referencing concerns expressed by the scientific community and U.S. senators.

“It’s simply not going to happen,” he stated emphatically.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved a $1.6 million grant to fund the study after Kennedy abandoned the agency’s recommendation to administer the vaccine to all infants at birth in the U.S. · Continue scrolling

According to Johns Hopkins University in the United States, approximately 90% of infants who are exposed to hepatitis B at birth or within their first year of life go on to develop a chronic infection. Furthermore, 15% to 25% of these infants may succumb to early death due to related liver failure or cancer.

Danish researchers stand by the U.S.-funded hepatitis B trial.

Researchers at the Guinea-Bissau-based Bandim Health Project, affiliated with the University of Southern Denmark, conducted a study with the goal of enrolling 14,000 newborns to explore potential “non-specific effects,” which encompass skin and neuro-developmental disorders, including autism.

It is observed that Guinea-Bissau presently provides the vaccine solely at six weeks of age, a point at which numerous infants born to mothers with hepatitis B may already be infected. The introduction of the dose at birth is scheduled for 2028.

In the trial, one group of infants would receive it at birth, while the other group would receive it at six weeks, as is currently done.

Frederik Schaltz-Buchholzer, the lead investigator, noted that the conversation had moved towards politics rather than fostering a constructive scientific debate.

“If this trial is stopped, everyone will face losses, particularly in terms of confidence in vaccines and health research, which will be significantly affected,” he stated.

The group expressed their continued hope that a new trial proposal could be accepted in the future.

The Bandim project has dedicated decades to Guinea-Bissau, with researchers stating that their efforts focus on gaining a comprehensive understanding of the complete effects of vaccines, encompassing both benefits and drawbacks.

Kennedy referenced Bandim research to support the decision to reduce U.S. funding for Gavi, an organization that assists in purchasing vaccines for the poorest nations globally.

The U.S. CDC spokesperson did not provide a response to the request for comment.