Brazil is officially the first country in the world to offer a free dengue vaccine. This was announced by the Ministry of Health this Thursday (21). The inclusion of dengue vaccine will be in SUS (Unified Health System).

Brazil will offer dengue vaccine through SUS – Photo: Divulgação/UFMG – Vitor Maya Ferreira/ND

The vaccine, called Qdenga, will not initially be distributed on a large scale given the limited supply of doses at manufacturer Takeda’s lab.

The vaccine inclusion process was promptly carried out by the National Commission for the Introduction of Technology in SUS (Conitec), having passed all the necessary assessments and received a positive recommendation for inclusion.

Health Minister Nicia Trindade stressed that the decision took into account the cost-benefit ratio, as well as the need to guarantee access to the vaccine in a country as large as Brazil. The introduction of the immunizer in South Africa will be gradual, giving priority to specific audiences and regions with higher incidence.

However, Qdenga’s manufacturer, Japan’s Takeda Pharma, will only be able to offer the country 6.2 million doses in 2024, enough for 3.1 million people. The vaccination schedule consists of two doses of the vaccine.

In this way, the PNI (National Immunization Program) will identify priority groups and areas that present greater vulnerability to the disease. Dengue immunization is scheduled to begin in February.

To try to meet the population’s demand, the ministry is negotiating with a company to transfer vaccine production technology within the country, citing the large-scale production capacity of the Butantan and Fiocruz Institute (Fundação Oswaldo Cruz).

Dengue vaccine

The Qdenga vaccine is an anti-dengue vaccine that protects against four different types of the virus (DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3 and DENV-4). It is produced by the Japanese company Takeda Pharma Ltda.

The Kdenga vaccine is made from a weakened but still living virus. This virus interacts with the body’s defense system, causing a reaction similar to what we would have if we were naturally infected with dengue fever.

According to the Department of Health itself, one of the most interesting parts of the vaccine is that it does not cause actual disease or put people at risk. In other words, the vaccine helps build immunity in a safe and controlled way.

In short, Qdenga is a dengue vaccine that uses a weakened virus to teach our body how to defend itself without causing illness.