Ebola in the DRC: The EBO-PEP trial tests a preventative pill in Ituri, with over 250 volunteers
In a medical center in the Ituri province, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a clinical trial dubbed EBO-PEP has been evaluating an antiviral tablet since July 2026, intended for people exposed to the Ebola virus but who are not yet showing symptoms, Africanews reported on October 3, 2026. More than 250 participants have already been recruited.
To enter the trial, one must have been in contact with a confirmed case within the previous five days and show no signs of the disease. Volunteers are seen every day for 21 days, then reviewed on the forty-second day. The stated goal is to reach nearly 1,000 people, including adults and children from the age of 12.
A vaccine-orphan strain
The trial focuses on the Bundibugyo strain, against which no vaccine is currently approved: the tools deployed during previous Congolese outbreaks do not protect against it. The lead investigator, Dr. Jacques Zawadi, quoted by Africanews, summarizes the challenge by saying that seeking a treatment for a disease that has none "gives hope."
This is the seventeenth Ebola epidemic recorded in the country. Starting in Ituri in mid-May 2026, it has reached at least 8,300 confirmed cases and approximately 4,000 deaths, according to Africanews. The Tunisian daily La Presse, which reported 4,018 deaths, 8,300 cases, and 2,162 recoveries on October 2, 2026, describes it as the deadliest in Congolese history.
Kinshasa announces a decline
On October 2, 2026, in Kinshasa, the Minister of Public Health, Hygiene, and Social Welfare, Samuel Roger Kamba, presented a report as of September 29: 8,224 confirmed cases, seven provinces, and 63 health zones affected, according to Radio Okapi. Twelve zones had not recorded a new case for more than 42 days, and eight others for 22 to 42 days. The minister estimated that "the peak is truly behind us," describing an epidemic that is narrowing around increasingly localized hotspots.
His ministry nevertheless calls for the maintenance of preventive measures: a health zone is only declared free of the virus after 42 days without a new case, which is twice the maximum incubation period. The results of the EBO-PEP trial will determine whether the thousands of contacts identified during each outbreak will one day be able to receive, in Central Africa, a preventative oral treatment.
This article was written in French with the help of artificial intelligence from the sources cited below, then translated from French automatically. Read the original.
