SAN ANTONIO (30 June 2021) -- Nearly all patients with cancer responded well to the COVID-19 mRNA vaccinations within three to four weeks of receiving their second dose. However, the fact that a few patients did not respond raised questions about their protection from the virus.94% of the 131 patients were positive for the coronavirus antibodies. Seven high-risk patients didn't develop antibodies to the coronavirus. Dimpy P. Shah MD, PhD of the Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson said, "We couldn't find any antibodies against that virus in those patients." This has implications for the future. Do we offer a third vaccine dose after treatment for cancer has been completed in high-risk patients?The study was co-authored by Dr. Shah and published in the high impact journal Cancer Cell. The University of Geneva and Mays Cancer Centre are coauthors.Ruben Mesa MD, FACP, senior coauthor of the study and executive director at Mays Cancer Center, said that patients with cancer do not develop an immune response to other vaccines or infections. It was therefore logical to speculate that patients at high risk are not immune to COVID-19 vaccine.Pankil K. Shah, MD and PhD of the Mays cancer Center, was co-lead author along with Alfredo Addeo MD, senior oncologist at Geneva University Hospital.Patients who received Rituximab within six weeks of receiving the therapy developed no antibodies. Rituximab, a monoclonal antibody, is used to treat autoimmune diseases and hematological cancers.Although patients receiving chemotherapy that is toxic to their cells had an antibody response, it was much less than the general population. Dr. Dimpy Shah stated that we do not know how this relates to COVID-19 protection.The study did not include the Delta variant or other COVID-19 mutants. The study also didn't examine the responses of cancer patients to infection-fighting T and B cells.The median age of the patients was 63. The majority of patients (106) had solid tumors, whereas 25 had hematological malignancies. The study population consisted of 80% non-Hispanic whites, 18% Hispanics and 2% Black.Dr. Mesa stated that future studies should be conducted in Black, Asian, and Hispanic patients to determine if there are differences in vaccine immune response.There is talk in some countries that one dose of vaccine might be enough to protect against the disease. However, this is not true for patients with cancer.Dr. Shah stated that there was a marked difference in the response to two doses. Two doses of anti-cancer medication are essential for strong antibody responses, at least in patients with cancer.Dr. Pankil Shah stated that the study is unique in that, unlike other studies that have evaluated the immune response within seven days or on the first dose, this study took three to four weeks for results.The study suggests that patients with high-risk cancers should still be vigilant even after they have been vaccinated. Dr. Pankil Shah stated that patients with high-risk cancers, especially those who have received anti-CD20 antibodies, should still be aware that their bodies may not respond to vaccination.###This research was partially made possible by a U.S. National Cancer Institute grant for the Mays Cancer Center, and a grant from American Cancer Society and Hope Foundation for Cancer Research.SARS-CoV-2 messengerRNA vaccines are immunogenic for patients with cancerAlfredo Addeo. Pankil K. Shar, Natacha Bordry. Robert D. Hudson. Brenna Albracht. Mariagrazia Di Marco. Pierre-Yves Dietrich. Barbara S. Taylor. Pierre-Francois Simand. Darpan Patel. Sarah Fertani. Robin J. Leach. Jose Sandoval. Ruben Mesa. Kate Lathrop. Nicolas Mach. Dimpy. ShahFirst publication: June 18, 2021, Cancer Cellhttps://www.cell.com/cancer/fulltext/S1535-6108 (21)00330-5The Mays Cancer Center is home to UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson and is one of four National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Centers. The Mays Cancer Centre provides cutting-edge cancer care, supports innovative cancer research, and educates the next generation to eradicate cancer in South Texas. Visit www.UTHealthsaMDAnderson.org.Read inspiring stories about Impact to see how we fight COVID-19.
