Bandim Health Project
11°50′43.64″N 15°35′45.42″W / 11.8454556°N 15.5959500°W
Projecto de Saúde Bandim | |
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| Abbreviation | BHP |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1978 |
| Founder | Peter Aaby |
| Type | Non-governmental organization |
| Location | Guinea-Bissau |
| Members | The INDEPTH Network |
Leader | Peter Aaby |
National Research Coordinator | Amabélia Rodrigues |
Parent organization | Statens Serum Institut |
| Affiliations | University of Southern Denmark Center for Vitamins and Vaccines Centre for International Health Copenhagen University Aarhus University |
| Staff | 150 |
| Website | www |
The Bandim Health Project is a research station in Guinea-Bissau related to University of Southern Denmark and the Statens Serum Institut, a danish research institution.
Group members have made strong claims about the non-specific effect of vaccines, but these claims have been described as the result of questionable research methods.
History
The Bandim Health Project was initiated in 1978 by Peter Aaby. The project is currently based on collaboration between the Ministry of Public Health in Guinea-Bissau, the Statens Serum Institut in Denmark, and researchers affiliated to The University of Southern Denmark, as well as the University of Aarhus, Denmark.[citation needed]
In 2012, the Danish National Research Foundation funded the establishment of the Center of Excellence, The Research Center for Vitamins and Vaccines (CVIVA) based on the Bandim Health Project and its research into non-specific effects of vaccines.[citation needed]
Fields of research
The Bandim Health Project works with population based health research, focusing on women and children. The project's fields of research include:[citation needed]
- Vaccines, both their specific effects on the targeted diseases, and in particular their potential non-specific effects on morbidity and mortality.
- Other health interventions, including assessment of the total impact on mortality of new interventions or changes in existing policies.
- Infectious diseases, e.g. measles, diarrhoea, rotavirus, respiratory infections, malaria, HIV, HTLV, and Tuberculosis.
- Nutrition, including micronutrients such as vitamin A supplementation, and breast-feeding.
- Humanitarian aid.
Questionable research practice
A 2025 article in Vaccine said that strong claims made by Benn and Aaby about non-specific vaccine effects were not supported by the evidence presented: "We were surprised to find several instances of questionable research practices, such as unpublished primary outcomes, outcome switching, reinterpretation of trials based on statistically fragile subgroup analyses, and frequent promotion of cherry-picked secondary findings as causal, even when primary outcomes yielded null results. Sample size calculations appeared to be driven by unwarranted optimism regarding effect-sizes and event rates leading to underpowered studies".
A 2026 article—also in Vaccine—reported on 10 pre-registered randomized controlled trials (RCTs) performed at the Bandim Health Project where the primary outcomes are partly or completely missing from the scientific records. Altogether these 10 RCTs included more than 74,000 children.
The organization
The Bandim Health Project is led by Peter Aaby. The National Research Coordinator is Amabélia Rodrigues. Since the project's foundation in 1978, more than 700 scientific articles have been published, and more than 40 PhD or doctoral degrees and 13 Masters of International Health degrees have been obtained by researchers employed by the project.[citation needed]
Affiliations
Bandim Health Project is placed in Guinea-Bissau and also has a small department at Statens Serum Institut in Denmark. Bandim Health Project is also affiliated with University of Southern Denmark, where Peter Aaby is an adjunct professor and Christine Stabell Benn holds a professorship in Global Health.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ↑ Offord, Catherine (5 February 2026). "Controversial Danish vaccine research group faces new allegations". Science. doi:10.1126/science.zh9tuek. Retrieved 23 October 2026.
- ↑ "Epidemiology". Statens Serum Institut. 9 February 2026. Archived from the original on 19 July 2026. Retrieved 23 October 2026.
Large cohort studies and biobanks have been also established by a research station in Guinea-Bissau (Bandim Health Project) and through research activities in Greenland.
- ↑ Tsanni, Abdullahi (12 February 2026). "Guinea-Bissau suspends US-funded vaccine trial as African scientists question its motives". Nature. 650 (8101): 279–280. doi:10.1038/d41586-026-00220-9. ISSN 0028-0836.
- 1 2 Støvring H, Ekstrøm CT, Schneider JW, Strøm C (November 2025). "What is actually the emerging evidence about non-specific vaccine effects in randomized trials from the Bandim Health Project?". Vaccine 127937. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127937. PMID 41233263.
- 1 2 Støvring, Henrik; Ekstrøm, Claus Thorn; Schneider, Jesper Wiborg; Strøm, Charlotte (7 March 2026). "Non-emerging primary trial results from the Bandim health project". Vaccine. 75 128302. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2026.128302. ISSN 1873-2518. PMID 41643234.
External links
- Official website
- Research Center for Vitamins and Vaccines Archived 21 October 2020 at the Wayback Machine
- Statens Serum Institut
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