Measles cases in the US have reached record levels, with no approved treatments or drugs available for the highly contagious virus. The Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has promoted alternative treatments like vitamin A, despite experts debunking his claims.
Biomedical scientist Richard Plemper says vaccination remains the most effective way to prevent measles. He spent decades working on antivirals but notes that no drug can replace a safe and efficacious vaccine. Measles is caused by an immune system reaction rather than the virus itself, making it challenging to develop treatments.
Plemper’s research group has developed compounds that have shown promise in halting measles virus replication in animals, but these are not currently available as treatments. The scientist emphasizes that a measles vaccine works well and that withholding vaccination for clinical trial purposes is unethical due to the risks of infection.
The CDC continues to recommend vaccination over vitamin A, citing its effectiveness in preventing measles. However, Plemper notes that vitamin A can be used in managing select cases but not as an alternative treatment.
Measles’s impact is often underestimated, with patients sometimes forgetting the severity of the disease and its potential complications like pneumonia or brain damage. The vaccine has been highly successful, leading to a decline in infectious diseases, but this success also means that the risks associated with vaccination weigh heavily on parents’ minds.
Source: https://www.fiercebiotech.com/research/you-just-cannot-develop-drug-measles-roars-back-life-first-treatment-remains-pipe-dream