Covid shot failed

[Bigpike]

Covid shot failed, Madeira, MO was concerned my system may not make antibodies, test confirmed. Reason is I am on prednisone because of sarcoidosis in lungs and in spinal cord, diagnosed 5 ½ years ago. Also have Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), diagnosed four years ago, and advanced PC 3 ½ years ago. Doc thinks Prednisone is the main culprit. Is anyone else experienced failure to make antibodies?

[GP24]

How much prednisone do you have to take each day? The product insert of some vaccines recommend to avoid high doses of corticostorids.

[Hidden]

Steroids can suppress the immune system, but it does depend on how much you are taking. Small doses like 5 or 10mg per day don't cause that. Here is an article on the subject regarding Covid and steroids.

creakyjoints.org/living-wit...

[Bigpike in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for article, currently on 10 MG Prednisone, late last year Provenge failed 3 out of 4 times. MO thinks the MDS is a factor. Will review vaccine options to see if another type may work better.

[RICH22 in reply to Bigpike]

I also have MDS but the deletion 5Q type... meaning I lost a chunk of my DNA somewhere along the road.... I take a chemo that attacks mutant red blood cells, leaving only the healthy ones... pretty cool, right?

[Hidden]

Sounds fishy, is your MO positive about this?

[Bigpike in reply to Hidden]

Had blood test, no antibodies.

[LearnAll in reply to Bigpike]

Bigpike....If antibodies against Coronavirus was not detected that does not mean you have no immunity. Antibodies disappear after Covid19 vaccine in a few months and even earlier in many people. The real long term immunity from vaccine occurs thru Memory T Cells . These memory T cells when exposed to vaccine learn to recognise Coronavirus. And when the virus gets inside ,they are fully ready to kill and destroy the virus.

So Antibody immunity is short term and Memory T cell immunity is long term after getting vaccine.

[Bigpike in reply to LearnAll]

Thanks, will discuss with MO

[Bigpike]

Had blood test for antibodies, also late last year Provenge failed 3 out of 4 times.

[Bigpike]

Don't Recall the last number, generally WBC count tends to be a bit high while my hemoglobin and platelets (last test was 75,000) tend to be low.

[Hidden]

Sorry to hear about the vaccine not working for you. I am hoping the side effects I had indicate my body was fighting it off after my 1st shot (Pfizer). I had chills all night, nausea, puking, fever, and really sore arm. How about you?

[Bigpike in reply to Hidden]

No reaction, not even sore arm.

[treedown in reply to Hidden]

Just got mine last week and just some discomfort at the shot location. I heard its the second one that packs the punch, but just from hearsay.

[Maleko808 in reply to treedown]

Had second one 10 days ago and no worse than the first. Sore arm, slight headache

[treedown in reply to Maleko808]

Good to hear thanks.

[Shanti1]

Hi Bigpike,I wouldn't be so quick to think the vaccine failed. Please see this explanation from MD Anderson on why a negative antibody test does not mean you don't have immunity, including that many antibody test measure antibodies against the viral nucleocapsid protein and the Pfizer and Moderna cause production against the viral spike protein. In addition, T cells are the main way the body remembers and develops immunity against COVID, but T-cell immunity is difficult to measure, so B-cell produced antibodies are measured instead. Negative antibodies don't mean your T-cells haven't learned to recognize COVID.

mdanderson.org/cancerwise/w...

Many men on this forum, including my husband, take 10mg of prednisone as part of their prostate cancer treatment. Because this dose only replaces what the adrenal gland makes naturally, it isn't thought to be immune suppressive like a larger dose would be. In my mind, the MD syndrome would be more likely to cause a problem because of the WBC suppression or over production of a single WBC line.

[Bigpike in reply to Shanti1]

Thanks, I will discuss with MO

[tarzan11]

I have been taking prednisone for 30 years due to sarcoid. Dose has varied from 60 mg day to 5. Currently in 10. Had both moderna shots. No reaction to either. Concerned shots of no value due to prednisone like you. Time will tell. We all are going to run into covid at some point . God bless...

[Bigpike in reply to tarzan11]

My dose history is like yours, at this point need to ask the good Lord for protection.

[Grumpyswife]

How do you know that Provenge failed 3 times? Perhaps you mean you were unable to have the procedure 3 times.

[Bigpike in reply to Grumpyswife]

Lab was unable to process the blood to create the correct cells.

[Hidden]

I had Modena starting on January 15th. Essentially zero problems other than a sore arm when I moved it. Lasted about 18 hours. The typical flu shot packs more soreness for me. We are all different. Second injection, no problems..... sometimes hearsay is the fly in the ointment... as far as Prednisone, when I took 50 mg a day for 180 days during my clinical trial, I was told, that my immune system was going to be suppressed. So, there were a number of precautions that I had to take...... a replacement dose of 10 mg should present little problems.

Now, timing of antibody test from vaccination was? Dosage of Prednisone? Just curious......

[Bigpike in reply to Hidden]

Prednisone 10MG, issue may be the MDS bone marrow problem.

[Hidden in reply to Bigpike]

Tough to have two cancers. I wish you well in kicking the bastards.

[CalBear74]

Do you mean “moderna”not Madeira?

[Bigpike]

Correct.