CAG Translational Vaccine Research in High-Risk Adults (VAX)

Adults in high-risk groups – including the elderly, individuals with advanced chronic diseases, and those immunosuppressed due to medication or autoimmune disorders – represent a growing population. Despite being highly susceptible to severe infections, these groups are often under-vaccinated and are historically excluded from clinical trials due to safety concerns and uncertainty around vaccine responses. This exclusion creates significant gaps in our understanding of immunological responses, resulting in inequities in evidence-based vaccine recommendations and suboptimal prevention strategies.

The Clinical Academic Group for Translational Vaccine Research in High-Risk Adults (CAG-VAX) aims to 1) establish a clinical research platform that improves vaccine access and facilitates inclusive clinical trials for high-risk adults, 2) study immunological responses to vaccines and develop improved vaccination strategies for these vulnerable populations, and 3) improve our understanding of the epidemiology and burden of vaccine-preventable diseases in these groups.

CAG-VAX will address the critical need for inclusive vaccine research in underrepresented patient groups by creating an innovative clinical, immunological, and public health research platform focused on populations that are often excluded from vaccine clinical trials and have low vaccination uptake.

The CAG-VAX aims to provide access to vaccines for specific high-risk groups, with direct clinical impact on patients, through a newly established clinical infrastructure dedicated to specifically address the needs of these groups. At the societal level, broader vaccine access can reduce the disease burden of the healthcare system. Finally, by combining expertise in medical care, clinical trials, immunology, and epidemiology, CAG-VAX aims to develop evidence-based vaccination strategies for some of the most vulnerable individuals at risk of severe infections.