New flu jab to stop all strains

A FLU jab that protects against all of the most deadly strains is being trialled on the NHS in the world’s first test.

British scientists hope it will be far more effective than the existing vaccines, which only prevent a few types of the virus.

Currently flu jabs are manufactured every spring based on which strains are likely to be the most common the following winter. But the viruses tend to mutate in the gap following production, meaning the jabs often provide little protection.

Scientists from Oxford University have developed a vaccine to prevent all ‘Influenza A’ strains of the flu virus, which are the most deadly.

They are now recruiting 500 to 2,000 over-65s to take part in the trial. If the vaccine proves effective, patients would only need to have it once every five years.