RSV Adult Vaccine Candidate Provides 80% Protection

The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson announced on October 2, 2021, that its investigational respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine candidate was highly effective in protecting against lower respiratory tract disease (LRTD) caused by RSV.

The Janssen RSV vaccine candidate demonstrated 80% efficacy (CI, 52.2-92.9%) in adults aged 65 and older.

Following an initial proof-of-concept study with Janssen’s investigational RSV adult vaccine (Ad26.RSV.preF component only) in a human challenge study, Janssen combined Ad26.RSV.preF with a prefusion F (preF) protein for induction of a more optimal immune response.

This combination single-dose regimen was evaluated in the Phase 2b CYPRESS study, which enrolled 5,782 participants across 40 sites in the United States followed through a single RSV season.

There is no preventive vaccine or broadly available antiviral treatment for RSV, a highly contagious, potentially life-threatening respiratory virus affecting more than 64 million people worldwide in a typical year across all age groups.

“RSV remains a major global public health concern and a cause of serious respiratory illness in all age groups,” stated Ann R. Falsey, M.D., Professor of Medicine, University of Rochester School of Medicine and presenting author, in a press release.

“The positive efficacy results from the CYPRESS study reinforce the potential of this investigational RSV vaccine in preventing serious disease resulting from RSV in older adults.”

In September 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation for Janssen’s investigational RSV adult vaccine to prevent LRTD caused by RSV in adults aged 60 years or older.

Janssen is the Pharmaceutical Company of Johnson & Johnson, located in New Jersey, working tirelessly to make that future a reality for patients everywhere by fighting sickness with science, improving access with ingenuity, and healing hopelessness with heart.