The Cuban media has proudly revealed that a team of scientists from Cuba are currently undertaking phase one of a clinical trial for a vaccine to help improve the health of people who are HIV positive. Cuban scientists have claimed that a therapeutic vaccine aimed at reducing the viral load of patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), is currently in phase one of a clinical trial, in which it is being safety is studied. Dubbed as TERAVAC-VIH, experts say that although the vaccine is not intended to give patients a cure for HIV, it will allegedly enable the patients to somehow improve quality of their lives by reducing the amount of viral load which will be administered nasally, orally and through a spray and injection.
The TERAVAC-VIH Vaccine
In one of her statements reported by Jamaica Observer, Yayri Caridad Prieto Correa, a researcher from the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) said that the nine patients involved in the trial did not show any adverse effects or toxicity, which happens to be the prime objective of the phase. It was found that after a series of preclinical studies in laboratory animals, and tests in the small group of humans, the findings show that the immune response of the organism has been enhanced due to the use of the vaccine, however, Prieto Correa insisted on not creating false expectations. The CIGB researcher has also claimed that this is a multi-year project, and will take time which will include testing phases with a greater number of seropositives in which large-scale and comprehensive efficacy will be tested to determine whether or not to continue with its use.
Furthermore, according to reports revealed by Tele Sur, despite the development of the vaccine, Prieto Correa has highly emphasized the fact that the vaccine could not offer a cure and that prevention was the main strategy to avoid the spread of the virus. As of the press time, Cuba's medical and health care system, particularly in regards to doctor training and disease prevention, has been seen as an ongoing success. Last 2015, the World Health Organization has recognized Cuba as the first country in the world to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of both HIV and syphilis.
Cuba's Lauded Medical System
Meanwhile, it was found that the proposal has been presented at the first Congress BioProcess 2017, which takes place in Camaguey, shows signs of efficacy, however she noted that it does not cure the disease. Ultimately, the Cuban Ministry of Public Health reveals that 31 years after the first case diagnosed in the country with HIV, transmission by blood and its derivatives and mother-to-child transmission have already been eliminated.
