A vaccine to prevent genital herpes is being tested on Phoenix-area women.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is partnering with pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals to test the new vaccine on about 7,500 women in more than 40 locations throughout the United States and Canada.
Called Herpevac, the vaccine is in stage-three clinical trials. In earlier trials it was found to reduce the risk of a genital herpes infection by about 75 percent, according to NIAID.
If the Food and Drug Administration approves Herpevac, ASU's Campus Health Service would seek to build a supply as soon as possible, said Interim Director and Chief of Staff Dr. Stefanie Schroeder.
It's exciting, she said, particularly after the human papillomavirus vaccine was approved earlier this year.
Merck and GlaxoSmithKline competed to release the HPV vaccine first, and Merck succeeded when its vaccine, called Gardasil, was approved in June.
Now, GlaxoSmithKline has a leg up with the herpes vaccine - which Merck officials say their company is not pursuing.
Approximately one in four adult women in the United States already has genital herpes, NIAID reported.
The Campus Health Service has diagnosed 43 new cases of herpes since March, Schroeder said.
Herpes is a virus, and once contracted, a patient has it for life. The only completely effective method for preventing it is abstinence, Schroeder said.
While condoms help, they are not foolproof because the virus can live in the skin surrounding the genital region in addition to on the genitals, Schroeder said.
Herpes is usually treated by an antiviral oral medication called Valtrex, which is also produced by GlaxoSmithKline.
Now, the company is recruiting women to participate in Herpevac trials. Their recruiting efforts included ads posted on facebook.com in October.
The vaccine is being tested at three facilities in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
To participate in the clinical trials, women must first go through a blood screening to confirm they do not already have the herpes virus.
While there are risks to participating in clinical trials, they are relatively minor, Schroeder said.
"Once it goes to human trials, the risk is very small," she said. "Most of the big bugs have been worked out, but you're still taking a risk."
For Rosie Servis, an English literature sophomore, the cause was worth the risk.
Servis participated in Herpevac trials about four years ago.
She received the shot three times over a period of about a year, and in the end had no complications.
The vaccine was successful, Servis said, and she recommends other women participate as well.
"Anything that can help protect women, I think is very positive," she said.
Reach the reporter at: Annalyn.Censky@asu.edu.
