Experimental Lyme disease vaccine being tested in hot spots Pennsylvania, New Jersey
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- An experimental new Lyme disease vaccine is gaining a lot of interest and is being tested in our area, where the disease is skyrocketing. Pennsylvania and New Jersey are Lyme disease hot spots with some of the highest numbers in the country.
Nationwide, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates about 476,000 people get Lyme disease each year in the U.S.
Robert Terwilliger was eager to volunteer to test a new Lyme disease vaccine.
"I'm hoping it works this way, I won't have no worries," he said. "You know, I go out in the woods and enjoy myself. And if I find a tick on me, OK, I'm good. I don't have to worry about anything."
Pfizer and Valneva SE, a French biotech company, developed the experimental vaccine known as VLA15, which targets the bacteria from a tick bite that causes Lyme disease.
"It's a vaccine that's designed to prevent Lyme disease caused by the six most common types of Lyme bacteria in both the U.S. and Europe," Pfizer vaccine chief Annalisa Anderson said.
Lyme disease cases have exploded recently with some blaming global warming which helps ticks thrive.
Most cases are on the East Coast from Virginia to Maine. Some of the highest numbers are in the Delaware Valley.
Pennsylvania has 6,763 Lyme disease cases, New Jersey has 2,400 and Delaware has just over 600.
"It's always a worry," Terwilliger said.
Symptoms of Lyme disease can be flu-like. The first sign is often a red, round bulls-eye rash.
It's usually successfully treated with antibiotics but can cause lingering problems.
For the potential new vaccine, researchers are hoping to enroll 6,000 people mainly from wooded areas where Lyme disease is common.
"Ever since we learned of this trial several months ago, we've had people on a waiting list waiting to be notified," clinical researcher Dr. Alan Kivitz said. "So absolutely, we have people who are interested who've been waiting to hear that the study is opening."
In earlier studies, a good immune response was reported. The next phase will test if the vaccine is effective and safe.
If the trial goes well, the vaccine could be available in 2025. Until then, it's best to use insect repellent.
Researchers are recruiting people in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. For more information, click here.
