Anti-vaccine Hype is a Threat to People with Cancer

[AussieNeil]

"A call to action—We all need to do our part to combat fake or inaccurate health news. Misinformation about any health topic is troubling and potentially dangerous."

BY Sue Friedman, DVM in Cure Today

curetoday.com/articles/anti...

When we consider that CLL is aptly described as a cancer of the immune system - our immune system is compromised even before we are diagnosed, the current worsening of immunity rates on diseases that were becoming rare chills me for our community members. We can't have live vaccines and are dependant on those around us being vaccinated to keep us safe!

As Sue Friedman says:

"Vaccines are an example of successful public health strategy to prevent disease. Thanks to massive vaccine efforts, devastating diseases like polio and smallpox are now almost unheard of in the United States and globally. Like so many other public health issues, the impact of vaccines and infectious diseases go beyond the individual. Vaccines are part of the “herd health” strategy that I learned about in veterinary school. That means that vaccinating everyone protects the individual and society as a whole. People who have suppressed immune systems or who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons are then largely protected. This strategy works best when everyone cooperates, works to protect each other, and acts for the common good.

:

According to experts from the National Institutes of Health, “When levels of vaccine coverage fall, the weakened umbrella of protection provided by herd immunity—indirect protection that results when a sufficiently high percentage of the community is immune to the disease—places unvaccinated young children and immunocompromised people at greater risk. This can have disastrous consequences with measles.”

:

Cancer treatment is challenging enough, without the added threat of a measles outbreak caused by decreased vaccinations. This blog is a call to action on behalf of our vulnerable and immune suppressed constituents."

Please tell those that know you have CLL how very important it is to your continued good health and life expectancy that they keep up to date with vaccinations. Do set a good example by ensuring you are up to date with your non-live vaccinations. These simple steps could save your life. This post explains what vaccinations you should have: healthunlocked.com/cllsuppo...

Get them done NOW, before your immune system's inevitable worsening leaves you even more susceptible to infections. Sue Friedman mentions the disastrous consequences with measles - which was declared to be eliminated in the USA in the year 2000. What other once nearly eliminated illnesses will become more common if we don't tackle this fake/ inaccurate health news?

zdoggMD's thoughts on this issue as shared by Chris/Cllcanada:

zdoggmd.com/incident-report...

Neil

(This is an unlocked post , which can be found via an Internet search)

Photo: waves colliding

[Kwenda]

Voting is compulsory in Australia, perhaps vaccinations should be also.

Dick

[DisneyMom]

I recently unfriended someone (both on social media and in real life) because she said that herd immunity is a myth and that "having measles can protect you from cancer. " to which a good friend and breast cancer survivor set her straight as she had had measles as a child and it didn't stop her from losing her breasts.

My children were just updated on their vaccines last week, I was updated 4 years ago but will need to get the pneumonia vaccine and the meningitis vaccine.

I've also asked that my family get the flu shot from now on.

[Billhere]

Right On Neil!

[WLondoner]

Since being diagnosed recently I have been shocked to discover a number of acquaintances who have not vaccinated their children. So utterly disgusting.

[AussieNeil Administrator in reply to WLondoner]

It's understandable that parents are refusing to have their children vaccinated because of the dangerous misinformation being propagated, which interestingly has been found to originate from just a few sources. Vaccinations aren't absolute safe and a very few children can have serious adverse responses. What the anti-vaccination proponents refuse to acknowledge is that the risk of a child dying or having a permanent disability is far, far greater from becoming ill from the disease vaccinated against than from the vaccine. Their unvaccinated children get to enjoy the best of both worlds from the unselfish parents that do have their children vaccinated. Their unvaccinated children avoid the momentary discomfort from the vaccination (and it can be distressing), AND they get the benefit of a much reduced risk of contracting illnesses due to 'herd immunity'. Their children benefit while avoiding the slight risk that community minded parents accept.

Neil

[AussieNeil Administrator]

From Slashdot: "Russian Twitter trolls have attempted to fuel the anti-vaccination debate in the U.S.," reports CBS News, citing a study from George Washington University. Bots are reportedly sharing opinions from both sides of the debate to stir up controversy

The Daily Dot reports:

The study further warns that the spread of anti-vaccine misinformation by "accounts masquerading as legitimate users" erodes the public consensus on the effectiveness of vaccination. News of the study comes as the U.S. faces the worst measles outbreak in 25 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Thursday that 940 known cases of measles have been reported so far this year. "This is the greatest number of cases reported in the U.S. since 1994 and since measles was declared eliminated in 2000," the CDC said.