Vaccine safety

[Jane424]

This article was in the Canadian National Post. Dr. Harry Rakowski is an academic Toronto cardiologist. •nationalpost.com/opinion/ha...

Johns Hopkins research on immunocompromised patients: medpagetoday.com/infectious...

[HeronNS]

Thank you for this. On our vaccine application form we are asked if we have other questions and when i ticked yes (this very question, is the delay a good idea) I was told I would have the chance to ask my questions when at the appointment. The best one can do, I suppose, is get the vaccine when offered and hope that supplies allow us to get bumped up a month or two for the second. They do ask on the form whether you have autoimmune disease so there will be records of everyone who answered yes.

[PMRpro Ambassador]

It isn't obvious from the articles but the study was done in solid organ transplant patients - who are taking very heavy duty immunosuppressants to avoid rejection of the transplant. It isn't yet clear how far this extrapolates to us on mere pred. In the parallel UK study done on cancer patients, also often in immunosuppressant medications, the lack of protection with the first jab was caught up by 3 weeks after the seond one.

I have never assumed that I would be protected by the first jab - nothing has changed in our behaviour. Here in Italy all the jabs are being done at 3 or 4 week intervals for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. But that has meant that due to supply problems, other than the younger essential workers given the AZ vaccine, they are only just booking in over 75s for vaccination. Fundamentally it makes little difference - either you have a lot of people who have had one jab or a lot of people who haven't had one at all - either way, they need to behave the same.

[Jane424 in reply to PMRpro]

Crick report: As reported in a preprint that has not yet been peer reviewed, more than 90% of the healthy participants showed good immune responses after a single vaccine dose. But the proportion fell to 40% for people with solid tumors and to only 15% for those with blood cancers.

Looking specifically at antibody levels, the response rates were 97% for healthy people, 39% for solid tumor patients and 13% for blood cancer patients after the first dose. Efficacy among solid tumor patients “greatly and rapidly increased” by boosting with a second dose at three weeks. Doing so brought these patients up to a 95% response rate; however, if the booster was delayed by five weeks, there was little improvement.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Jane424]

As usual, we are ignored! The advantage of the large numbers of first jabs is that the amount of virus in the pool will fall quicker. However, I was sceptical of the rapid roll-out and still am for the CEV and elderly. It's all about communication and all that has been communicated is that there is a potential high level of protection for the healthy. Not enough that some people remain very at risk ...

[Canada-Geese]

Thanks very much for posting the articles, it's very helpful.

[Jane424]

I am a bit different which I why I have been researching this. However, they may apply to more than me. First, I have 3 autoimmune conditions plus myeloma. I got polymyalgia after my flu shot. Second, I have a blood cancer which means a single dose gives only 13% protection. So what I am doing is waiting till I know I can get two shots 3 weeks apart. Otherwise the risk of my autoimmune disease isn't worth only 13% protection.Friends with blood cancers have been refused the second shot and told to wait 4 months like everyone else. Jane

[Jane424]

To those who read the info I posted, I should explain that my case is different from most of you. But the info may help some of you.First, I have 3 autoimmune conditions plus myeloma. I got polymyalgia just after my flu shot. Second, I have a blood cancer and one shot gives only 13% protection, so I feel the risk of more autoimmune problems is high for such minimal protection. I am waiting till I can get the second shot within 3 weeks which raises the protection for blood cancer patients. Friend swith blood cancers have been refused a timely second shot and told to waith 4 months,\. Jane