Examining future lessons of HIV vaccine trials

A recent issue of Vaccine included a paper that asked this question: "What can HIV vaccine trials teach us about future HIV vaccine dissemination?" (Newman, et al. Vaccine 26 (2008), 2528-2536 -- free abstract).

Based on focus groups conducted in the Los Angeles area, the researchers map the common barriers between participants' willingness to participate in vaccine trials and the acceptability of a hypothetical vaccine. In both cases, common themes emerged, including fear of vaccine-induced infection, false positives to HIV tests and associated consequences, side effects, partial vaccine efficacy, AIDS stigma, and mistrust of government, among others.

The authors conclude that these parallels provide a valuable opportunity to use HIV vaccine clinical trials to study issues related to acceptability of an approved vaccine. They write:

"...Rigorous sociobehavioral research conducted in conjunction with HIV vaccine trials, in addition to facilitating informed enrollment in safe and ethically conducted trials, may provide an empirical basis for targeted sociobehavioral interventions to ensure the effectiveness of future HIV vaccines in controlling the epidemic."