I would do pretty much anything (given the rational boundaries of the law, factual reality, and moral propriety) to take care of my family. I’ve built, welded, constructed, censused, taught, janitored, lawyered, clerked, written, advocated, hauled, tested, surveyed, taxied, guarded . . . I’ve done just about everything I could find to do. One of the most interesting things I’ve done is my remunerated work as a volunteer for the NIH’s Vaccine Research Center. I’ve been through trials of both Ebola and Bird Flu (which, besides making a fair bit of change, means I’m also now immune to them; bring on the pandemic!).
It’s been about 18 months since the last Ebola appointment. I check in every so often to see if they have another trial. We could use the extra funds. I mean, we can always use the extra funds, but with two in college and one on a mission, at this point, we could REALLY use them. A few weeks ago, finally, another vaccine trial is open; a Malaria vaccine! Who wouldn’t want to be immune (just in case I’m ever needing to travel to the tropics)?!
So the Malaria vaccine is different from the other two vaccine studies I’ve participated in. The Ebola and Bird Flu trials were both DNA vaccines, this one will be using irradiated sporozoites. Malaria isn’t the same kind of disease, where an immunological response to a virus can be generated by exposing a body to the virus’ DNA. Malaria is caused by a parasite (the sporozoite) invading a host body and then doing damage to the host’s blood. It kills about 1 million people a year.
The thing about vaccines that use a piece of the bad thing (like the DNA) versus vaccines that use the whole bad thing (like the attenuated virus of an MMR vaccine, or an irradiated sporozoite in my vaccine) is this; you can maybe GET the disease from a vaccine that uses the whole bad thing. So I there’s a small but statistically significant chance the vaccine itself could give me Malaria.
But probably not.
The trial will pay a lot of money. Like, more than 10% what my annual salary is at MES. And even with it speculative, ALL of it is spent already.
So. I’ll get six rounds of vaccine, and lots of follow up blood work and vaccination-site assessment, starting in early December. The really big weird deal comes next July. On July 11th I will be participating in what the Vaccine Research Center calls the “Malaria Challenge”. I’ll get bit/stung by a number (either 5 or 6, I can’t remember) of mosquitoes. Not just regular mosquitoes; super crazy non-native mosquitoes carrying Malaria sporozoites.
They’re going to give me Malaria. That’s . . . a 100% chance of getting it.
Now, Malaria is really bad. But it’s not contagious the way the flu or smallpox is. There is a specific breed of mosquito that carries it from person to person, and those mosquitoes don’t live in the United States. If/when I get it, you’ll be safe shaking my hand or eating dinner with me. Seriously, they like keep the mosquitoes in a special climate-controlled insect office for ridiculously dangerous and lethal insects or something, it’s not like they might get out and wreak . . . actually, that is sort of a realistic scenario. So much so that I am sure that the powers in charge of this process make REAL certain that their nasty mosquitoes will only ever get to feed on willing volunteers.
Well-paid volunteers that is.
So. If the vaccine really works, I won’t contract malaria. If it works like they seem to think it will work, there will be a lower incidence of malaria infection (so I might only have a 1 in 5 chance of contracting). Either way, if I get it, they’ll treat it. Malaria is completely treatable. But that’s how the disclosure is worded; “when” I get it, they’ll treat it.
*shrug* We live in a mortal world. I might as well get paid for it.
4 comments:
You are a brave man. I just think about how an emotional worrier like my mother would respond to all this.
Fascinating! Thanks for telling us about this. Interesting science and great that you can participate and benefit the world and your immediate family at the same time.
First of all I find this fascinating because I am in pathology and we are learning how diseases such as malaria attacks our system. Secondly if any of your children give you grief you can look at them and say, " I contracted malaria for you!" ...really, what can you say to that.
I watched a continuing education film at work last week that followed a group of volunteers who participated in a similar study a few years ago. It's amazing what a vaccine like this could do for people who live in countries with a high incidence of malaria. Bravo!
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