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Safety tests call over use of new four-in-one jab in UK
The Herald (United Kingdom); Feb 16, 2002

CAMPAIGNERS said last night they would be demanding safety assurances after it emerged a new four-in-one jab combining the chickenpox virus with the MMR vaccine soon could be available in the United Kingdom.

As the debate continues to rage over claims that MMR is linked to autism and bowel disease, GlaxoSmithKline, the drugs company, has said it is submitting its MMRV vaccine for approval in Britain.

The new ''super jab'' will be filed with the European regulatory authorities later this year and could be in use as early as 2003, a spokesman for the company said.

As well as the three live viruses - measles, mumps and rubella - it also delivers a shot of the varicella or chickenpox vaccine.

Jackie Fletcher, of the pressure group Jabs, said last night the campaigners would be seeking information on how the new jag was safety-tested.

She said: ''It seems such incredible timing to be saying this at this time. It is bizarre to think that we have all this controversy over the MMR and they want to force in a fourth vaccine.

''We have had 14,000 e-mails in the last week alone about MMR. People feel angry and that they are being backed into a corner over the jags for no good reason - and now this.''

Ms Fletcher added: ''We would want to know to what extent safety trials have been carried out. We could only find six weeks maximum of safety trials for MMR in the world. Are they just relying on the MMR being safe enough and adding another on top?

''We would want them to be open about what safety trials they have conducted, over what length of time and in what circumstances. Did the families know they were part of a trial and how many children has it been tested on?''

A GlaxoSmithKline spokes-man said the vaccine would work out cheaper than MMR because it cuts down on the number of injections a child has to undergo. Combined vaccines are used extensively in countries where there has been less controversy over the MMR jab.

Chickenpox can be fatal, especially in people with suppressed immune systems, and deaths from the disease in adults have increased over the past 30 years, despite the availability of a vaccine against it.

Once someone has had it they become immune to the disease, but the virus does remain dormant in nerve tissues and may reappear to cause shingles (herpes zoster) in later life.

Currently, licensed chickenpox jabs are not available in the UK although they can be obtained through some private companies.

Chickenpox accounts for about 25 deaths annually south of the border.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: ''We are not in any way considering adding any vaccine to MMR at this point.''

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