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The Royal Free Travel Health Centre
A World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for Travel Medicine
Latest news
It’s a double first for the UK in advancing the fight against meningococcal disease: New vaccine can protect travellers against four types of meningitis
The UK is leading the way in advancing the fight against meningococcal disease by securing the first worldwide delivery of Menveo, the first quadrivalent conjugate vaccine available in Europe that protects adolescents (from 11 years of age) and adults against four strains of bacterial meningitis (A,C, W-135 and Y).
Within days of the EMEA licence approval for the marketing of Menveo and being received by Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics, the first batch was making its way to the UK, allowing the shipment of 100 doses of the vaccine to pioneering travel vaccines specialist, Dr Jane Zuckerman, Medical Director of The Royal Free Travel Health Centre. This Centre is located at the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust, which is part of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Travel Medicine at UCL Medical School.
This global first was the result of some excellent cross-functional team working. From the receipt of EMEA approval to delivery of the first doses of Menveo, less than one week elapsed” says Chris MacDonald, UK Marketing Manager for Meningitis Franchise. Chris continues, “We negotiated a prompt release of the product with the UK’s National Institute of Biological Standards and Control and as soon as this was received, we set the wheels in motion to fulfil our first customer order for this new vaccine that will have a significant positive impact on public health in many countries throughout the world.
Dr Jane Zuckerman was delighted to be given the accolade of being named as the first travel clinic in the world to receive Menveo. Commenting on this extraordinary feat, Dr Zuckerman says, “This is such a wonderful achievement for The Royal Free Travel Health Centre to be making history with Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics. We are advancing the fight of prevention of meningococcal disease not just here in the UKbut also worldwide as international travel gathers pace. I have been waiting for this moment for a long time. We now have a conjugated vaccine that can fight four of the five main groups of bacteria that cause meningitis and this is truly evolutionary.
Updates and Latest Travel News: Other Sites
For the very latest information concerning health and safety issues whilst travelling overseas please visit the following sites.
British Advice from the British Malaria Advisory Panel
Department of Health
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
International Society of Travel Medicine
National Travel Health Network and Centre
NHS Web site for travel advice/SCIEH
World Health Organisation
Travel Health
Please note: The Royal Free Travel Health Centre is not responsible for the contents or reliability of the linked websites and does not necessarily endorse the views expressed within them. Listing should not be taken as endorsement of any kind. We cannot guarantee that these links will work all of the time and we have no control over availability of the linked pages.
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