Khanh Hoa (VNA) -  Two influenza vaccines IVACFLU-S and IVACFLY, which were successfully produced inVietnam, were introduced at a workshop held by the Institute ofVaccines and Medical Biologicals (IVAC) and the Programme for AppropriateTechnology in Health(PATH) in the central province of Khanh Hoa on September 25.

The vaccines arethe results of a project to improve the capacity of developing influenzavaccines in Vietnam, which has been carried out since 2010.

VACFLU-S(seasonal influenza vaccine) provides immunity against the Influenza B virusand the H1N1, H3N2 subtypes of the Influenza A virus, while IVACFLY providesimmunity against the H5N1 subtype of the Influenza A virus.

Participants to the event shared guidance and global progammes related to influenza vaccines; international assistancefor building policies, regulations and directions of the Ministry of Health on fluvaccines; and summary reports on results of clinical trials of IVACFLY produced by IVAC in the first, second andthird phases.

IVACDirector Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Be said the institute successfulconducted clinical trials for the two vaccines.

Both of vaccinesare safe, enabling healthy adults to be immune from flu, he said, adding thatthe vaccines have undergone many clinical trials since 2017.

Since 2010, PATH, an international, non-profitglobal health organization, has worked with the Vietnamese Ministry of Health todevise a long-term plan on influenza vaccine production and consumption, aswell as guidance on clinical trials and vaccine registration. 

Over the 2017-2018 period, the second phases ofthe vaccine trials for seasonal influenza and A/H5N1 were completed, paving theway for the vaccines to be licensed for commercial use.

Notably, the price of the vaccines will be onlyone-third of imported ones, standing at 80,000-120,000 VND (3.5-5 USD) perdose.

According to IVAC, at a seminar on seasonalinfluenza vaccine production in Vietnam which took place in late August, DeputyHealth Minister Nguyen Thanh Long announced that locally produced seasonalinfluenza vaccines had received their first order from the World HealthOrganisation (WHO), making Vietnam among the 14 countries supplying thepreventative treatment.

Influenza is a leading cause of low morbidityand mortality worldwide. Seasonal influenza causes some 250,000-500,000fatalities and up to five million cases of severe illness across the globeevery year.

Vietnam reports more than a million cases ofinfluenza-like illnesses every year and has reported isolated cases of avianinfluenza A/H5N1 in humans, a strain with a particularly high fatality rate.

The strain is being monitored for any evolutionor adaptation that could turn it into an easily-spread form, bolstering againstthe likelihood of a pandemic. 

The IVAC, established in 1978 by the MoH, plansand carries out the production of vaccines and serums for the ExpandedProgramme on Immunisation in Vietnam and the overall prevention and treatmentof diseases. It also conducts research and applies technological advances invaccine development and production in cooperation with organisations bothinside and outside the country.–VNA