My CLL specialist published his study in which he evaluated the antibody response to the Pfizer Covid vaccine in CLL patients (both W&W and in treatment).
Unfortunately the results support what we have been hearing anecdotally in this group - CLL patients have a significantly lower antibody response rate than the general population.
That said- antibodies are only one factor in immunity and there are currently studies underway to test for T and NK cell response.
The fact that this impacts so many people globally ensures that all of the great minds will invest in finding solutions for it- which is very reassuring to me.
Things are gradually opening up here and we are heading towards herd immunity. The more ppl are vaccinated around me- the safer I am (with or without antibodies). Risk management and common sense seem to be key in avoiding the pandemic and also keeping my sanity. Continuing to be cautious but also enjoying outdoor activities and some semblance of normal.
Pretty much ties in with what a haematologist told me before I had the vaccine. She said it might not be as effective for me as others, but it will give some protection, so it's better to have it rather than not.
I suspect we'll be a group encouraged to have booster jabs at sometime in the future in the same way we are with flu jabs & antibodies seem to be only one factor in this story.
Yes- they are currently evaluating a booster dose here for the immunocompromised population. I believe that something is better than nothing and the vaccines are absolutely a game changer- especially for herd immunity
Thanks for posting this article. It’s not surprising. If anything, I found the article oddly encouraging. Some people have suggested the vaccine would not provide benefit at all to Cll patients, this study shows reasonably high rates of antibodies among certain Cll groups like those in remission or treatment naive.
The study, as I read it, does not conclude that those of us who do not show measurable antibodies are not benefiting from the vaccines. I think we could get help beyond the T cell responses you describe, which are hard to measure.
The study we need to see is how many people who have Cll and have been vaccinated actually get covid. Then among those with Cll who have gotten the vaccine and developed covid, we need to know how they do as a group compared to people with Cll and covid who were not vaccinated.
I think we will find when that study is done that most of us with Cll who have been vaccinated and get covid will have much milder covid cases than those who are not vaccinated.
I was surprised the Cll group did as good as it did in this study, which leads me to believe that even those not showing antibodies are still getting some help.
My doctor told me, and this was before the vaccine, that most of his Cll patients who got covid, survived it and did okay. That will most certainly improve with the vaccine. This is not to say we should drop our guard or that covid is still not potentially a deadly disease for us. I just think when we see studies that show how people with Cll who get vaccinated and then get covid do, I think like the general population, we will see less severe disease on average. It might not be as good as the general population, but the general population shows almost 100 % benefit from the vaccine preventing severe disease, including older people with weaker immune systems.
I do find this study and the fact that they are seeing milder illness in both the general and the immunocompromised populations very reassuring. They know more today and are better equipped to battle it.
The great news is that our covid numbers are very low now and that the vaccines work. The bad news is that when there is very little chance of catching it- it is much harder to study it. I feel a lot more comfortable now since, as my specialist said, even without antibodies or any immunity, you still need to have people to catch it from in order to get sick. Still remaining cautious but I am starting to believe that the worst of it is behind us.
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Cellular and humoral immune response to SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines in patients treated with either Ibrutinib or Rituximab
Living in the USA with CLL and want to know where to sign up for your COVID-19 Vaccination? A State-by-State List
Re vaccine and outcome for CLL you might find this interesting
