Studies conducted in Rambam’s Joseph Fishman Oncology Center are proving the efficacy and safety of COVID-19 vaccinations for cancer patients with solid tumors, and vaccinations—indicating a favorable profile.
Professor Irit Ben-Aharon. Photography courtesy of Rambam HCC.
Following a study conducted last year in Joseph Fishman Oncology Center at Rambam Health Care Campus regarding the outcomes of COVID-19 in cancer patients, a team of researchers in the facility, led by Professor Irit Ben-Aharon, Director of the Division of Oncology, followed the vaccine outcomes in cancer patients over time and found that six months after receiving the second Pfizer vaccine, cancer patients showed a similar decrease in the levels of antibodies to those found in the general population.
In the first part of the current study, Professor Ben-Aharon and her team found that only 30% of patients with solid tumors developed antibodies following the first vaccination, but that number increased to 79% after the second one. Eighty-four percent of the control group (the general population) developed antibodies following the first dose.
In the Jerusalem Post article publicizing the follow-up study, Professor Ben-Aharon explained that the research team investigating the safety and the efficacy of the vaccinations, and shared that they were surprised to see the antibody levels decrease in a similar manner. “This was not what we expected, because some of the patients have been going through treatments that affect the immune system, she says.
Read the full article in The Jerusalem Post