“We know that vaccines can prevent fatal diseases and prevent infectious diseases,” says former president of the National Ethics Advisory Committee

The professor of immunology, Jean-François Delfraissy was invited to franceinfo on Wednesday.

“We need to repeat. We know that vaccines can prevent deadly diseases and prevent infectious diseases,” declares, Wednesday April 24 on franceinfo, Jean-François Delfraissy, professor of immunology and President of the National Consultative Ethics Committee, while the WHO publishes a study affirming that at least 154 million lives have been saved thanks to vaccines for 50 years. A study which only concerns vaccination against 14 diseases including measles, whooping cough and yellow fever and which appears in the middle of European Vaccination Week.

Franceinfo: In the same press release as that of the WHO, Unicef ​​emphasizes the drop in infant and child mortality, there are fewer children dying before the age of 5, this is that right ?

Jean-François Delfraissy : That’s right. We are observing a drop in infant mortality which is linked to two phenomena: vaccination – and in particular vaccination against measles – but also post-partum infant mortality which has decreased. But vaccination plays a really major role and above all quite simple, known and solid. It is good that the WHO reminds us that science must ultimately drive public policy decisions.

What do you think is the main obstacle to further improving these statistics, access to the vaccine or the reluctance of part of the population to be vaccinated?

We can distinguish what is happening in what we call the global South and in the countries of the North. In the Global South, it’s access to the vaccine. There are still areas where access to vaccines such as measles remains difficult. Furthermore, there is a fear from the WHO about a temporary cessation of vaccination against measles during the Covid period in the Global South. In the countries of the North: France, the major European democracies, Canada, the United States… Access to vaccines is easier, there is therefore some reluctance to vaccinate which remains in relation to certain vaccines which are not moreover not the same depending on the country. These reluctances were increased during the Covid period. In France, there is a sort of doubt among the population about the benefit or not of vaccines. It must be repeated. We know that vaccines can prevent life-threatening illnesses and prevent infectious diseases. Side effects exist but they are limited and closely monitored. The benefit-risk ratio is very very in favor of the vaccines we use.

Where is global research?

There are major infectious diseases against which we do not have a vaccine and we would like to have one. For example, HIV-AIDS, or even malaria for which we are starting to have vaccine candidates. We also don’t have a good vaccine against tuberculosis. On the one hand, we are delighted to have a strategy based on science and on the other hand, science must advance to find vaccines for us where they are not available. Currently, global research is based on the lessons of Covid and the possibility of having a response with a new vaccine using messenger RNA techniques within 100 days. For the next pathogen, the idea is to be able – once it is identified – to construct a vaccine within three months.