Cuba has achieved a single-dose vaccine to prevent five diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, Hepatitis B and Haemophilus Influenzae Type B, the national media reported Monday.

Registered by the Center for State Control of Medicine Quality, the vaccine is ready to be applied nationwide, according to Luis Herrera, director of the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in the central Cuban city of Santa Clara.

The new medicine implies savings, because only one vial is needed for each dose instead of four, and no additional handling is needed, Herrera said.