As Valley fever vaccine for dogs nears release, one for humans could be within reach

While between 10,000 and 20,000 cases are reported to the CDC every year, a vaccine for Valley fever is potentially getting closer to becoming a reality.

“The vaccine is actually in development right now,” said Dr. John Galgiani, who directs the University of Arizona’s Valley Fever Center for Excellence. “There’s a vaccine which hopefully within the next year may be available to veterinarians to protect dogs from Valley fever, who get this disease several times more commonly than humans do.”

He said they were able to single out the disease-causing gene in the fungus responsible.

“That gene, once it was removed, made the fungus unable to cause disease,” explained Galgiani.

There’s a chance, he added, that an eventual vaccine could be a once-and-done deal.

“Because of the nature of the vaccine, it may act just like the infection itself,” Galgiani said. “Which, people who get over it are immune for the rest of their lives.”

While people typically don’t come down with Valley fever twice, the goal is to prevent the long-lasting, often debilitating symptoms that follow infection.

According to Galgiani, a potential vaccine could especially benefit military personnel, prison populations, retirees and newcomers to the region are all at higher risk and would especially benefit from immunity that doesn’t come with weeks of ailments like achy joints and fatigue.