Cancer patients ‘much less protected after first dose of Pfizer vaccine’

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Cancer patients are less protected against Covid than other people after one dose of the Pfizer vaccine, a study has found.

The study, which recruited 205 people, included 151with solid cancers, such as lung, breast and bowel, or blood cancers.

Three weeks after one dose, it found that 39 per cent of people with solid cancers were protected, and that 13 per cent of people with blood cancer were protected.

That’s compared to 97 per cent of people with no cancer.

Following a second dose of the jab three weeks after the first, which some cancer patients received, there was an increase to 95 per cent in their immune response against Covid.

Some 1.2 million people at very high risk of being seriously ill with the virus were prioritised for a first vaccine dose in the first phase of the rollout, which includes people with specific cancers

The UK government decided to extend the gap between first and second jabs from three to 12 weeks in late December.

This was to give more people some protection as soon as possible.

Dr Sheeba Irshad, oncologist and senior study author from King's College London, said the findings were "really worrying”.

She recommended that an urgent review of the plan for vaccinating people in clinically extremely vulnerable groups is carried out.

"Until then, it is important that cancer patients continue to observe all public health measures in place such as social distancing and shielding when attending hospitals, even after vaccination," she said.

Cancer Research UK said the study had not yet been reviewed by other scientists and people undergoing cancer treatment should continue to follow the advice of their doctors.

Among those in the trial who had to wait longer for their second dose, there was no real improvement in protection.

Five weeks after the first dose, some 43 per cent of people with solid cancers were protected against coronavirus.

That’s compared to 8 per cent of people with blood cancer, and 100 per cent of people with no cancer.

The researchers tested volunteers for antibodies and T-cells in their blood, which signals that the immune system can defend against illness from the virus in the future.

"One size does not fit all," said Dr Irshad.

"Cancer treatments have profound effects on the immune system and cancer patients' immune mechanisms are inferior.

"We need to be concerned about other vaccines for this population too - they do need a second dose quickly.”

Martin Ledwick, Cancer Research UK’s head information nurse, said: "We know that this information could be worrying, but anyone undergoing cancer treatment should continue to follow the advice of their doctors, and we encourage all who can to take up the vaccine."

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