Scientists grapple with ethics in rush to release Ebola vaccines

A statue representing a child receiving a injection of vaccine seen at the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva. - AFP

Normally it takes years to prove a new vaccine is both safe and effective before it can be used in the field. But with hundreds of people dying a day in the worst ever outbreak of Ebola, there is no time to wait.

In an effort to save lives, health authorities are determined to roll out potential vaccines within months, dispensing with some of the usual testing, and raising unprecedented ethical and practical questions.