You Heard it Here!
Scientists are working on combining ancestral genes from four major flu strains to develop the holy grail…a universal flu shot. One that would be given once and confer lifetime protection. I was excited by the development of a nasal flu vaccine..and then disappointed when it failed to be effective for TWO years in a row. Still crossing my fingers that it comes back. This is better. No more tricking, bribing, coaxing children every single year. This could be huge. Our yearly flu vaccine relies on some good guesswork, the flu mutates rapidly and we are in a constant game of cat and mouse to keep up with it. The research is going well and they say that it is “scalable and translatable to humans and may provide the foundation for complete and long lasting anti-influenza immunity.”
Experts think it will be available by 2025. Sigh.
Susan Badaracco, Pediatrician and author of “The Oath: Maddy and Silenus”
