Abstract
Purpose: The COVID-19 vaccination campaign began in December 2020, in France, and primarily targeted the oldest people. Our study aimed to determine the level of acceptance of vaccination in a population of older patients with cancer.
Methods: From January 2021, we offered vaccination with the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine to all patients 70 years and older referred to our geriatric oncology center in Marseille University Hospital (AP-HM) for geriatric assessment before initiation of an oncological treatment. Objectives were to evaluate acceptance rate of COVID-19 vaccination and to assess vaccine safety, reactogenicity, and efficacy two months after the first dose.
Results: Between January 18, 2021 and May 7, 2021, 150 older patients with cancer were offered vaccination after a geriatric assessment. The majority were men (61.3%), with a mean age of 81 years. The two most frequent primary tumors were digestive (29.4%) and thoracic (18%). The vaccine acceptance rate was 82.6% and the complete vaccination rate (2 doses) reached 75.3%. Among the vaccinated patients, 15.9% reported mild side effects after the first dose and 23.4% after the second dose, mostly arm pain and fatigue. COVID-19 cases were observed in 5.1% of vaccinated patients compared with 16.7% in unvaccinated patients. Of the 22 vaccinated patients who agreed to have their serum tested, 15 had antibodies against the spike protein at day 21 after the first dose.
Conclusion: Our study showed a high acceptance rate of COVID-19 vaccination, with good tolerance in this frail population. These results highlight the benefits of organizing vaccination campaigns at the very beginning of oncological management in older patients.
Clinical trial registration: This study was registered May 23, 2019 in ClinicalTrials.gov ( NCT03960593 ).
Keywords: Aged; COVID-19; Drug-related side effects and adverse reactions; Geriatric assessment; Medical oncology; Vaccination.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, vaccination, vaccination., medical oncology, drug-related side effects and adverse reactions, Aged, geriatric assessment, 【초록키워드】 Treatment, Tolerance, Efficacy, Vaccine, COVID-19 vaccine, reactogenicity, Trial, fatigue, antibody, Cancer, BNT162b2, serum, older patient, COVID-19 vaccination, clinical, management, oncology, Patient, Pain, France, Mild, age, university, patients, older patients, Marseille, Thoracic, Older, Side effect, second dose, COVID-19 case, first dose, Registered, doses, vaccination rate, Complete, men, objective, benefit, highlight, tested, evaluate, reported, majority, determine, the spike protein, digestive, reached, offered, primary tumor, 【제목키워드】 Efficacy, Cancer, older patient, COVID-19 vaccination, acceptance,