Merck's experimental AIDS vaccine fails

[Nutmegger]

Source: Associated Press

TRENTON, N.J. - In a disappointing setback, a promising experimental AIDS vaccine failed to work in a large international test, leading the developer to halt the study. Merck & Co. said Friday that it is ending enrollment and vaccination of volunteers in the study, which was partly funded by the National Institutes of Health.

It was a high-profile failure in the daunting quest to develop a vaccine to prevent AIDS. Merck's vaccine was the farthest along and was closely watched by experts in the field.

Officials at the company, based in Whitehouse Station, N.J., said 24 of 741 volunteers who got the vaccine in one segment of the experiment later became infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. In a comparison group of volunteers who got dummy shots, 21 of 762 participants also became infected.

"It's very disappointing news," said Keith Gottesdiener, head of Merck's clinical infectious disease and vaccine research group. "A major effort to develop a vaccine for HIV really did not deliver on the promise."


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070922/ap_on_he_me/aids_vaccine_fails

[Trajan]

1. Damn .... How unfortunate .....

Oh ... and dont forget: Merck will need another few billion taxpayer dollars to boost their bottom line, just in case .....

[truthisfreedom]

2. Hey wait, can I get one of those dummy shots?

They work better, right?

[Vidar]

3. I give them credit for trying, and then admitting their failure without some coverup.

[xchrom]

4. sad, sad news -- we need a vaccine so desparately.

i hope they keep trying.

[LeftishBrit]

5. That's really bad news.

I hope a vaccine can be found soon.

[drm604]

6. Tragic. n/t

[GreenPartyVoter]

7. What kind of compensation is there for volunteers who participated and got sick?

[LisaL]

8. Why should they get compensation?

Obviously they weren't infected with HIV on purpose. That kind of study would be unethical. I presume the study consisted of high risk people being given vaccine and then going on on their merry way, doing what it is they would have been doing anyway.
Some got infected, but they would have been infected regardless. You have basically the same number of people infected in a control group as in the group given the actual vaccine. Basically, this shows the vaccine was useless.