Immunobridging Trials: An Important Tool to Protect Vulnerable and Immunocompromised Patients Against Evolving Pathogens

Overview

Journal Vaccines (Basel)

Date 2025 Jan 24

PMID 39852798

Authors

Pedro Cruz

Jie Min Lam

Jehad Abdalla

Samira Bell

Jola Bytyci

Tal Brosh-Nissimov

John Gill

Ghady Haidar

Michael Hoerger

Yasmin Maor

Antonio Pagliuca

Francois Raffi

Ffion Samuels

Dorry Segev

Yuxin Ying

Lennard Y W Lee

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Safeguarding patients from emerging infectious diseases demands strategies that prioritise patient well-being and protection. Immunobridging is an established trial methodology which has been increasingly employed to ensure patient protection and provide clinicians with swift access to vaccines. It uses immunological markers to infer the effectiveness of a new drug through a surrogate measure of efficacy. Recently, this method has also been employed to authorise novel drugs, such as COVID-19 vaccines, and this article explores the concepts behind immunobridging trials, their advantages, issues, and significance in the context of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. Our goal is to improve awareness among clinicians, patient groups, regulators, and health leaders of the opportunities and issues of immunobridging, so that fewer patients are left without protection from infectious diseases, particularly from major pathogens that may emerge.

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