British scientists are trialling a world first vaccine for a little-known disease which is the one of the biggest causes of childhood disability and deafness in the UK. Experts working for Moderna have begun clinical trials to create a vaccine against Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common virus that few mums are warned about.
But when caught by pregnant women, it can cause serious disabilities in their unborn babies - such as deafness, cerebral palsy, seizures, ADHD, and autism. And frighteningly, mums can become infected through kissing or simply eating and drinking utensils, toys and dummies.
It's estimated two to three babies are born with the disease every day in the UK. But it's is not as well known as other risks to unborn children like Down’s syndrome, spina bifida and cystic fibrosis and there is no screening for it.
Moderna said it was looking to recruit 8,000 participants globally, including women in study centres in London and Southampton, and hopes to report its findings in 2026. A spokesperson said: "The aim of the trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of our vaccine, mRNA-1647, against primary CMV infection in women aged 16-40 years."
CMV Action, the only UK charity which supports families affected by congenital CMV, welcomed the trials and called for better understanding of the virus and is risks. Sharon Wood, project manager at the charity, said: "The virus is very common and in most people, you wouldn't know you had it.
"But when a pregnant mum catches it and passes it onto a newborn baby, the effects can be devastating. We're always lobbying for more tests to be done and drugs to be offered, but by the time that happens it will already be too late for so many children.
"There are ways to mitigate the risks of a pregnant woman being infected, but if nobody talks about it, nothing will change."
The call for better understanding was backed by mothers of children who had contracted CMV and suffered serious health problems as a a result. Abbie Teague, 31, lost her unborn baby Eadie when she was 27 weeks pregnant after she contracted CMV.
She admitted she had ‘never heard’ of CMV and has said that she thinks the vaccine is a ‘fantastic’ idea. Abbie said: “A vaccine would be fantastic but it should be part of the routine screening because you have your bloods anyway.
“They should let you know if you’ve already had CMV which 85% of the population already have. So if you do get it, then you’ve already got the antibodies. But if you get CMV for the first time during your pregnancy, then it really affects your baby.
“It should be part of the screening at ten weeks and you should be told if you are at high risk of a CMV pregnancy and if you need to take precautions."
Alicia Barrass said she's ‘absolutely in support’ of the vaccine and ‘doesn’t know why more research’ hasn’t gone into CMV. Her daughter Scarlett, four, was diagnosed with the condition when she was ten months old after being hospitalised with a chest infection.
Because of the brain damage the virus gave her, Scarlett is now in a wheelchair full-time, is visually impaired, is profoundly deaf in both ears and is non verbal. The toddler was cared for in a high dependency unit five times last year and had a whopping 300 seizures a day.
Since being put on a ketogenic diet - high fat, low carbohydrates - her seizures are down to 30 a day. Alicia, 24, said: “I’m absolutely in support of it.
“It was discovered a long time ago and we’ve got vaccines for a lot of things so I don’t know why more research hasn’t gone into it. When you go into a midwife appointment, there’s loads of leaflets and flyers for things to look out for and advice but I understand why CMV isn’t one of those things that isn’t talked about.
“They do a blood test on newborns and they re-tested that blood sample which was positive for CMV which is how they said she was born with it. I don’t understand why that can’t be an extra standard thing and one more thing they test for at the blood test.”
Mel Hiscutt also backed the trials after her daughter Hope was born with cerebral palsy after contracting the condition during the pregnancy. The CMV had attacked her liver, heart and spleen during the pregnancy, causing multiple organ failure and sepsis, and she was put on a ventilator at birth.
She also has epilepsy, hearing loss and and needs to be fed through a feeding tube. Mel said: "We just want to try and make more people aware, because it's so much more common than people know."
