Providing better immunity against infectious diseases

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, terms such as ‘immunity’ and ‘protection’ have become ever-present in our daily lives over the last couple of years. We have become much more aware of what tomorrow could bring, giving new significance to preventing and protecting against infectious diseases.

The pandemic has also dramatically accelerated the science behind vaccines and disease prevention, and it has been a privilege for us to play a leading role in this. Now, by following this science and working together, we must continue to transform how we protect people – and especially the most vulnerable in society – from infectious diseases.

At the ISIRV OPTIONS/International RSV Symposium congresses in September, and then during IDWeek in October, we will have the opportunity to reflect on how far we have come and on our ongoing commitment to protecting millions of people worldwide from diseases such as COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

The global burden of infectious diseases
This task is critical, as the burden of these diseases is high, and can often disproportionately affect children. For example, there are approximately one billion influenza cases globally every year,¹ and the disease burden is highest in children, with 20-30% being infected every year, compared to 5-10% of adults.^2,3

Similarly, RSV is a common respiratory virus that is contracted by 90% of children by the age of two.^4,5 Although RSV usually produces mild, cold-like symptoms, in more serious cases it can progress to lower respiratory tract infections, such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia.^6,7,8

In some babies, particularly those born prematurely or those two years or younger with heart or lung conditions, there is a higher risk of these severe infections developing, with life-threatening consequences.^9,10 But the reality is that any infant – whether they are born at term or prematurely, or have other health conditions – can be hospitalised in their first RSV season, and many hospitalisations occur in infants who are considered healthy.^11,12

It is not enough to just treat these diseases when they strike – indeed, for some conditions like RSV, there is no specific treatment. Instead, we have to protect against them in the first place. Prevention is critical, particularly in a health system that has already been put under huge strain by the added pressure of a pandemic on top of a considerable existing infectious disease burden.

Advancing disease prevention
Disease prevention is something that we’re intently focused on through decades of experience in antibody development.

This expertise is the foundation of the complementary approach that we are taking, optimising the potential of both vaccines and antibodies to provide long-lasting immunity, and building on our legacy of being first to innovate in this space. It was something that enabled us to be successful in helping to respond to the pandemic, and it will continue to be integral in delivering greater protection in influenza and RSV, where there is a similar need for action as well.

For example, in influenza, vaccinating 70% of children aged between approximately one and six years of age could help reduce community transmission of flu, and also provide indirect protection to others by reducing the spread.^13,14

Childhood vaccination programmes like the one in the UK have already demonstrated both feasibility and impact of this approach, and we are providing paediatric vaccines to countries like the UK, Ireland and Finland to support in these efforts to extend protection.^15,16,17,18

In RSV, meanwhile, we are working to build on our longstanding heritage and help improve prevention of the disease for infants in the future – not just for those at high-risk, but for all infants who could contract RSV.

Tackling global health and treatment inequalities
While we don’t know when the next pandemic may emerge or what it will be, we are committed to playing a central role in addressing current and future pandemic and endemic diseases.

The COVID-19 pandemic tested our health systems to their limits but through ground-breaking collaborations, local partnerships, commercial initiatives and advanced manufacturing, we are helping to ensure they are resilient to potential future shocks. 

We want to make better disease prevention and vaccines a lasting legacy of the pandemic, helping to protect people around the world from infectious diseases.