Leukemia discovered after vaccination against COVID-19, is it caused by the vaccine? See what medical experts say
Recently, there have been online comments saying: Some people develop leukemia after being vaccinated against COVID-19. Is there a connection between the two?
The COVID-19 epidemic is still the largest epidemic in the world. At present, the most effective way, in addition to taking preventive and control measures, is to vaccinate against COVID-19. Like the rest of the world, the Chinese government has been vigorously promoting and promoting the vaccination of the population against COVID-19. Vaccines have also shown their importance in outbreaks everywhere.
It is undeniable that some adverse reactions will occur after we are vaccinated. In most cases, the adverse reactions are relatively mild and usually recover in a few days. However, some people said on the Internet that they were diagnosed with leukemia after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, which is suspected to be caused by the COVID-19 vaccine. Is this really true?
Correlation between vaccines and leukemia
In fact, since the advent of vaccines, people all over the world have been worried, will vaccines cause leukemia? The answer is clear: there is no evidence that vaccination causes leukemia.
A 1999 study (DOI: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6690668) showed no relationship between vaccination of the vast majority of infants and subsequent risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL); another in 2005 Similar results were also confirmed in the study (DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyi113), DTP, MMR, and polio vaccination were not associated with leukemia risk, and some vaccines even reduced leukemia risk.
From the perspective of the pathogenesis of leukemia, it is related to both internal and external factors. First of all, the patient may have some kind of congenital susceptibility quality or a chromosomal aberration itself, which is the internal cause of leukemia, plus external factors. effects, such as environmental pollution, virus infection, ionizing radiation, chemical factors, etc. Based on our understanding of the pathogenesis of leukemia, research on various vaccines in the past, and statistics on COVID-19 vaccines, it is shown that there is no causal relationship between the COVID-19 vaccines currently used in China or those used abroad and the onset of leukemia.
Leukemia discovered after vaccination against COVID-19, is it caused by the vaccine?
Adverse reactions to vaccines are not uncommon. Whether it is the COVID-19 vaccine or other vaccines, adverse reactions may occur. However, to judge whether the adverse reaction is caused by the vaccine, certain judgment standards are required. We generally consider six aspects:
1) Time correlation: The first thing to judge is the time correlation, whether it appeared after vaccination. Some diseases may have existed before, but people did not pay attention to them. After vaccination, they went to the hospital to check and found. Of course, if you have symptoms before vaccination, it is generally impossible to judge that it is related to the vaccine.
2) Whether there is a theoretical basis: This requires professional doctors to judge whether the pathophysiology of the disease is related to vaccination. For example, live attenuated vaccines are generally not given to immunocompromised people to avoid infection. As analyzed above, the causes of leukemia are often quite complex, and are often related to the patient's own genes and exposure to carcinogens. Generally, it cannot be obtained in one day. So far, there is no theoretical evidence that vaccination will cause leukemia.
3) Correlation strength: that is, to judge from statistics, what is the probability of the vaccine occurrence of this adverse reaction. At present, there are almost no cases of leukemia-related adverse reactions of the COVID-19 vaccine that we have monitored, and there are cases of thrombocytopenia, but no reports of leukemia.
4) Consistency of the association: It also depends on whether other people who have been vaccinated develop similar symptoms and diseases. For example, whether the incidence of leukemia in the vaccinated population is higher than the normal baseline level. But this also requires a large sample of statistical results.
5) Whether the reaction is regular: whether such adverse reactions will occur again if the vaccine is re-vaccinated after stopping the vaccine. We cannot judge this, because it is impossible for people with leukemia to get another vaccine and then get another one. But sometimes the fever caused by vaccination may reoccur at the next vaccination.
6) The specificity of the association: This also requires the doctor to judge whether the patient who developed leukemia after vaccination has no other possible pathogenic factors besides vaccination.
Summarize
After we are vaccinated, if we feel unwell, seek medical attention immediately. If we suspect that it is related to the vaccine, we can explain it to professional medical personnel, because whether it is really related to the vaccine or not, we have the right to report the suspected adverse reaction to the vaccine. Regardless of these rumors, the adverse reactions of the COVID-19 vaccine (especially the correlation with severe abnormal reactions) will always be tracked and studied, and we also hope that various statistics are open and transparent enough to be released in a timely manner , to remove doubts in people's minds.
In short, we should not be too nervous. At present, there are still a few people who have serious adverse reactions after being vaccinated. It can be seen that the vaccine is still very safe.
references:
[1] Zhao Changan. Vaccines and their adverse reactions [J]. Chinese Journal of Practical Pediatrics, 2013, 28(22): 1689-1691.
(Part of the pictures in this article are from the Internet, and the copyright belongs to the original author. I would like to express my thanks to the author of the pictures. If you find any infringement of your copyright, please contact me and I will delete it.)