Professor Richard Price
Contact information
Podcast interview
Curing Plasmodium vivax malaria

Vivax malaria used to be considered benign but is now recognised as an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Resistance to chloroquine (given to treat the parasite blood stage) is growing and ACT (artemisinin-based combination therapy) is becoming common treatment for vivax malaria. New drugs and better public health strategies can help elimination targets, anticipated for 2030.
Research groups
Richard Price
Professor of Tropical Medicine
Vivax malaria
The main focus of our translational research programme is to improve the diagnosis and management of vivax malaria. To achieve this we are working with in malaria endemic countries across the Asia-Pacific region and Horn of Africa to:
- optimise the safe and effective radical cure of vivax malaria,
- improve the molecular surveillance of drug resistant malaria
- define the morbidity and mortality of vivax malaria
- evaluate the impact and cost effectiveness of novel treatment and malaria control activities.
The programme is being conducted in collaboration with the Mahidol Oxford Research Unit (MORU) in Thailand and the Menzies School of Health Research (MSHR) in Darwin.
I am head of the clinical module of the World Wide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN). Between 2010-2020 he established co-chair the Vivax Working Group of the Asia-Pacific Malaria Elimination Network (APMEN).
CURRENT PROJECTS:
- Clinical trials and implementation studies of different primaquine regimens
- Field testing novel G6PD diagnostics
- Mapping populations at risk of malaria and drug induced haemolysis
- Determining the molecular basis of chloroquine resistant P. vivax
- Individual patient data metanalyses of antimalarial efficacy studies
Recent publications
Comparison of CD4 T cell response in Plasmodium falciparum and vivax malaria
Journal article
Nalubega M. et al, (2026), The Journal of Infectious Diseases
Effectiveness and safety of 7-day high-dose primaquine and single-dose tafenoquine versus 14-day low-dose primaquine in patients with Plasmodium vivax malaria (EFFORT): a multicentre, open-label, randomised, controlled, superiority trial
Journal article
Degaga TS. et al, (2026), The Lancet Infectious Diseases
Moving towards high-dose primaquine or single-dose tafenoquine for Plasmodium vivax treatment in Cambodia: a meeting report from dissemination of results of the EFFORT trial to stakeholders
Journal article
Dysoley L. et al, (2026), Malaria Journal, 25
Beyond malaria: can intermittent preventive treatment with sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine reduce the number of small vulnerable newborns globally?
Journal article
Unger HW. et al, (2026), The Lancet Global Health, 14, e157 - e163
Rapid detection of G6PD deficiency SNPs using a novel amplicon-based minion sequencing assay
Journal article
Tacoli C. et al, (2025), Scientific Reports, 16
Enhancing unique identification of patients with malaria using biometric fingerprinting in Papua, Indonesia
Journal article
Fransisca L. et al, (2025), Malaria Journal, 25