A Third Dose of the COVID-19 Vaccine Recommended for Some Cancer Patients With Weakened Immune Systems – On Cancer – Memorial Sloan Kettering

As you may have heard, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)has recommended a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for people who are immunocompromised. This includes some but not all people with cancer.

Mini Kamboj

Mini Kamboj, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CentersChief Medical Epidemiologist, has answers to your questions about who is eligible and how you can schedule an appointment to receive your third shot.

For a vaccine to protect you, it must activate your immune system. In some immunocompromised patients, this ability is impaired, so a third dose can boost the immune response.

According to the CDC, among severely immunocompromised people who had undergone solid organ transplant and had virtually no protection after receiving two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, 30 to 50% developed antibodies protecting them from COVID-19 after getting an additional dose.

People who have moderate to severe immunosuppression qualify to receive an additional dose, usually because of an organ or stem cell transplant, HIV infection, steroid therapy, or certain cancer treatments that impair the bodys ability to fight infections.

Its important to know that not all cancer patients have a weakened immune system. Those cancer patients who are considered immunocompromised include:

These eligibility criteria cover the most common indications. Your provider will be able to order the third vaccine dose for other immunosuppressive treatments or conditions if they decide that the extra dose will benefit you.

If you meet the criteria, you can receive a third dose 28 days or later after completing your first vaccine series.

Only patients who completed their primary immunization with either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines can receive the third dose. MSK will offer the same vaccine brand to patients as they previously received. Mixing vaccines is not permitted at this time.

The CDC has not made any recommendations yet for people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. We are closely following their guidance and will communicate any changes.

To find out if you should get a third dose, call your MSK doctors office or send a message through the MyMSK patient portal. If you are eligible for an additional vaccine, your doctor will schedule an appointment for you.

On Wednesday, August 18, MSK will begin offering the additional vaccines at the David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, located at 530 East 74th Street.

Starting Monday, August 23, we will be scheduling appointments at:

These clinics will be open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Additional dates and locations, including our New Jersey locations, will be added shortly.

If you think you meet the criteria for getting a thirdvaccine dose, you should call your providers office to confirm your eligibility, and a vaccine appointment will be scheduled for you. You should be prepared to share your vaccination card or a photo of it. Please present information from your card, rather than the Excelsior pass, which does not have the details about what vaccine brand you received and on what dates.

Yes, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hasgranted emergency use authorization for patients 12 and older to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and 18 and older to receive the Moderna vaccine.

The side effects from a third COVID-19 vaccine are similar to those experienced after receiving the original vaccines. Scientists in Israel recently began giving a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to people with compromised immune systems. Side effects were reported by 31% of people, the most common being soreness at the injection site. Other side effects included fatigue, headache, body aches, and fever. These symptoms dont last long about one to three days.

The safety of a third dose in people whove had COVID-19 breakthrough infections is not known, therefore an additional dose for those patients is not recommended at this time. Some patients in whom initial vaccine responses are expected to be severely blunted, such as stem cell transplant orCAR-T recipients or those treated with B-cell depleting therapies, may benefit from a third dose after breakthrough infection. Discuss your situation with your clinical care team.

Even after the third dose, people with weakened immune system must take precautions to protect themselves from COVID-19. You should:

If you develop symptoms of COVID-19, contact your clinical care team and get tested.

Not at this time.The vaccines remain very effective against severe disease for those who do not have compromised immune systems. In the future, third doses may be recommended for more people because immune protection tends to weaken over time. In addition, as new variants of COVID-19 emerge, it may be necessary to design new vaccines to protect against them.

August 16, 2021

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A Third Dose of the COVID-19 Vaccine Recommended for Some Cancer Patients With Weakened Immune Systems - On Cancer - Memorial Sloan Kettering