Progress toward approval of an HCV vaccine

New effective drugs to treat hepatitis C (HCV) promise to cure nearly all patients, but relying solely on antivirals without an effective vaccine has been ineffective in eliminating all other infectious diseases. A prophylactic HCV vaccine needs to be developed. Along with increased screening and drug coverage, an effective vaccine could make it possible to meet the World Health Organization’s target to eliminate HCV by 2030. On the basis of recent knowledge of immune correlates of protection combined with the demonstrated immunogenicity and protective animal efficacies of various HCV vaccine candidates, there is a possibility that a prophylactic HCV vaccine is on the horizon. This article summarizes the current status of a prophylactic HCV vaccine. Elicitation of cross-neutralizing antibodies and broad cellular immune responses are likely needed to overcome this highly diverse virus.