DRC to receive 70,000 Ebola vaccines, but effectiveness against current strain is unknown

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is set to receive 70,000 doses of Merck's Ervebo Ebola vaccine as it grapples with its most severe Ebola outbreak to date. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed the allocation on Thursday, following a request from the DRC for vaccines from the global stockpile managed by the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision.

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The Ervebo vaccine is approved to prevent disease caused by the most common Ebola strain, Ebola Zaire, and its effect on Ebola Bundibugyo in humans is still unknown.

However, a significant challenge remains: the Ervebo vaccine is approved for the Ebola Zaire strain, the most common type of the virus. Its efficacy against the current outbreak's strain, Ebola Bundibugyo, is still unknown. To address this, 20,000 of the allocated 70,000 doses will be utilized in a late-stage clinical trial aimed at understanding the vaccine's impact on the Bundibugyo strain.

This outbreak has now become the largest in the DRC's history, exceeding the previous record set between 2018 and 2020. Government data indicates over 5,000 confirmed cases and 2,378 deaths attributed to the current epidemic. Earlier this week, WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus declared the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo a continuing global emergency, underscoring the severity of the situation.

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Out of the 70,000 doses allocated by WHO, 20,000 will be used in a late-stage trial to understand the impact of the vaccine on the Bundibugyo strain.

Efforts to contain the spread are ongoing, with civil protection teams seen disinfecting after handling the body of a man suspected of dying from Ebola in Bunia, Ituri province. The image highlights the grim reality faced by healthcare workers and responders on the ground as they work to mitigate the virus's relentless advance.

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the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo remains a global emergency