About the COVID-19 Vaccine Booster
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved COVID vaccine boosters, a third dose, for patients who are moderately to severely immunocompromised. They recommend that these patients receive an additional dose vaccine at least 28 days after their second dose. You may get your booster at most local pharmacies. To find a location nearest you, CLICK HERE.
At this time, booster shots are not recommended for any other population.
What is an immunocompromised patient?
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) defines moderately to severely immunocompromised people as those who have:
- Been receiving active cancer treatment for tumors or cancers of the blood
- Received an organ transplant and are taking medicine to suppress the immune system
- Received a stem cell transplant within the last two years or are taking medicine to suppress the immune system
- Moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency (such as DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome)
- Advanced or untreated HIV infection
- Active treatment with high-dose corticosteroids or other drugs that may suppress your immune response
Even after receiving both doses of the vaccine and the booster, it is imperative that you still wear a mask that covers both your nose and mouth, socially distance and wash your hands frequently.
For more information on what cancer patients need to know about COVID-19, click here to read about safety precautions and what to do if you have symptoms.
Female patients, please be aware that some women develop swollen lymph nodes under the arm after receiving the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines. The enlarged lymph nodes may be palpable or detected asymptomatically on mammograms. To learn more, click here.