The Empowering Networks to Defeat Dengue (END Dengue) Coalition, spearheaded by the Philippine Medical Association, presents a hand sign to represent its goal of eradicating dengue deaths by 2030 at its launch event in Quezon City on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (Photo by Jason Sigales/INQUIRER.net)
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Medical Association (PMA) urged the government to grant access to “new generation” dengue vaccines amid rising cases of the disease.
The appeal was made at the PMA’s launch of the Empowering Networks to Defeat Dengue (END Dengue) Coalition in Quezon City on Tuesday.
In a letter addressed to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. and read at the launch, the PMA said, “We understand that safety of dengue vaccines is of utmost concern because of our previous experience with CYD-TDV (Dengvaxia).”
“With recent advances in vaccine technology, there are new generation dengue vaccines in the market or in Phase 3 clinical trials which showed promise in terms of vaccine effectiveness and safety,” the medical organization added.
The PMA specifically cited TAK003 (branded as Qdenga), a vaccine by Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda.
TAK003 is licensed in 40 countries and is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) to prevent dengue in highly endemic countries like the Philippines, the PMA stressed.
The organization added that the vaccine has been pending application with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since April 2023.
“Having witnessed the devastating impact of dengue on our patients and their families, we strongly urge the government to grant access to these new generation dengue vaccines,” the PMA said in its letter to Marcos.
‘Right to protection’
“Talagang kami ay nag-aapela na dalhin na (ang mga vaccine) para sa ating mga mamamayan na mayroong demand dito,” Immunization Partners in Asia Pacific (IPAP) President Dr. Lulu Bravo told reporters on the sidelines of the END Dengue Coalition launch.
(We really are appealing to have these vaccines brought to our citizens who demand for it.)
“May karapatan tayo na maprotektahan ang sarili natin, pero ang unang proseso ay mabigay sa atin yung bakuna available,” Bravo added.
(We have a right to protect ourselves, but the first process is for us to be given the available vaccine.)
The call also came amid rising cases of the disease in nine areas in Metro Manila, Central Luzon and Calabarzon as reported by the Department of Health (DOH) on Monday.
“Ang isa pa diyan: pagka marami tayong dengue (cases) sa Pilipinas, aba’y hindi tayo pupuntahan ng mga turista, ng mga negosyante. Yung mga balikbayan mo, matatakot pumunta ‘pag ang bayan mo ay maraming dengue,” Bravo said.
(Another thing: if there are many dengue cases in the Philippines, we won’t be visited by tourists, businesses. Our repatriates, they’ll fear returning if our country has a lot of dengue cases.)