The Battle To Beat Malaria
Nominee Science & Media Awards 24
Documentary / Catherine Gale / United Kingdom/ 2024 / 52 min / Englisch
In all medical science, there has been no longer, tougher battle than the fight against malaria. It’s one of the world’s deadliest diseases—more than 600,000 people die of malaria every year, the vast majority of them children. But we’re now at an exciting turning point.
THE BATTLE TO BEAT MALARIA follows scientists—the same team behind the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine—as they develop and test R21/Matrix-M, a promising new malaria vaccine. Close to 150 previous efforts have ended in failure, and just one other vaccine has been approved. Will R21 survive the rigorous human trials and prove both safe and effective?
The film tells the dramatic inside story of this historic breakthrough, and offers a raw, intimate look at the scientists, medics, and trial participants who are battling this deadly disease.
Film discussion: The search for a malaria vaccine has been going on for decades. Why is it so difficult to combat the pathogen and how do scientists deal with the constant setbacks?