Vietnam conducts phase 3 clinical trial of dengue fever vaccine

Ho Chi Minh City Pasteur Institute in collaboration with Dong Thap Province Department of Health organized a conference to deploy MOBILIZE-1 clinical research on dengue fever vaccine.

On November 7, Associate Professor, Doctor, Specialist Doctor 2 Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the research has been reviewed and approved by the Ministry of Health and the National Council of Ethics in Biomedical Research. This is a key study to evaluate the safety and protective efficacy of the dengue vaccine, deployed in 6 countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam.

“The implementation of this large-scale, multinational phase 3 clinical trial in Vietnam is an important step in the journey of researching and developing another solution to prevent dengue fever. We look forward to receiving the support of local authorities, medical facilities, and the trust and support of the community so that the research can achieve its goals and targets and be completed on schedule,” Associate Professor Nguyen Vu Trung shared.

According to specialist doctor 2 Vo Thanh Nhon, Director of the Center for Disease Control, Dong Thap Department of Health, Dong Thap in particular and the Southern region in general is one of the places where dengue fever has been circulating for many years. We are committed to cooperating with the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City in implementing research activities in the locality, contributing to the journey of researching and developing a new vaccine.

Associate Professor, Doctor, Specialist Doctor 2 Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of Pasteur Institute Ho Chi Minh City, spoke at the conference - PHOTO: NC

There will be 12,000 people participating in the trial.

This study will be implemented in Dong Thap province (Cai Lay Regional General Hospital, Dong Thap General Hospital), An Giang province (Kien Giang Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital) and Da Nang city (Quang Nam Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital).

It is expected that 12,000 participants will be children aged 2 to under 16 years and adolescents aged 16 to 17 years, of which 4,000 will be from Vietnam. The study participants, who are children aged 2 to under 16 years and adolescents aged 16 to 17 years, will be invited to the study site for consultation, examination, and testing. If they meet the criteria and agree to participate (with the consent of the child's legal representative), the participants will be randomly assigned to the study to receive a dose of vaccine or placebo. The dengue vaccine used in this study is the MSD vaccine.

It is expected that 12,000 people will participate in the trial - ILLUSTRATION PHOTO: AI

According to the plan, 4,000 Vietnamese children aged 2 to 17 will participate in the trial. Specifically, the Institute will recruit 3,600 children in Dong Thap, An Giang and 400 children in Quang Nam between October and November 2025. The process of monitoring the children's health will last 5 years, from 2026 to 2030.

During the study, participants will undergo blood tests and health check-ups, concomitant medications, monitoring, fever monitoring to detect dengue fever, as well as any adverse events throughout the study period. The study period is 5 years, participants will be examined by a doctor in the study periodically according to schedule, about 3 months/time in the first year and 6 months/time from year 2 to year 5.

The examination will be conducted in person or by telephone. The final results on the protective effect of the vaccine will be available after 5 years.

Dengue fever, a never-ending worry

According to Associate Professor Nguyen Vu Trung, dengue fever is an infectious disease caused by the Dengue virus, transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. People infected with the disease may have no symptoms or mild symptoms, but some develop severe symptoms, causing dangerous complications and can lead to death. People of all ages can get the disease.

According to the Ministry of Health, from the beginning of the year to the end of July 2025, the whole country recorded 32,189 cases and 5 deaths. Of which, the Southern region accounted for more than 70% of the total number of cases, Ho Chi Minh City alone had over 16,800 cases, an increase of nearly 170% compared to the same period in 2024, with 10 deaths. In the Central region, Khanh Hoa province recorded about 5,000 cases and 2 deaths. Hanoi reported 475 cases and 7 active outbreaks. The cycle and timing of the outbreak are no longer the same as before but have changed, showing that the risk of the epidemic is becoming more and more complicated.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/viet-nam-thu-nghiem-lam-sang-giai-doan-3-vac-xin-ngua-sot-xuat-huyet-185251107115557162.htm