PrEPVacc COVID-19 Update II – July 2020

Dr Eugene Ruzagira, PrEPVacc Trial Director

PrEPVacc Trial Director, Dr Eugene Ruzagira of MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Research Unit, gave the following update on the status of the PrEPVacc trial to study colleagues on 8 July:

“Thank you to all study colleagues for your continued work on PrEPVacc during a very challenging time. We have not been in hibernation and indeed many activities have continued, and important preparatory steps have been taken. At the third Trial Steering Committee (TSC) meeting held on 1 July, the TSC was very impressed with the progress that each site has made so far and was appreciative of your efforts towards ensuring that PrEPVacc is successful.

“At this moment, in relation to the Registration Cohort, the PrEPVacc sites in Maputo, Mbeya, Dar es Salaam and Masaka have resumed recruitment and follow-up. SAMRC is working towards obtaining ethics approval for the Registration Cohort at the Verulam site (PrEPVacc activity at the Phoenix site has ceased).

“For the vaccine trial, all PrEPVacc sites are currently working towards completion of the necessary regulatory and ethical approvals and will undergo site initiation visits, virtual and in person, from August. We expect that by the end of August the vaccine trial will have started at one site and will begin at others over the following months.

“Starting in July, over 48 of you from across all sites, will be taking part in a special month-long Good Participatory Practice course that will be delivered online. This is being led and provided by our good friends at AVAC, who have tailored the course to PrEPVacc. I know many of you are looking forward to this training and we are very grateful to AVAC for their support and for so readily sharing their expertise in an area that we all recognise is crucial to the success of the study.

“I will keep you updated as we take further steps towards the start of the vaccine trial, but for now please continue to remain safe and work carefully within your communities, following the relevant national guidelines for your site.”