By People with low immunity due to health conditions, including cancer, are being recruited to a study to urgently find out if coronavirus vaccines will still offer them high protection.
People with cancer, inflammatory arthritis, diseases of the kidney or liver, or who are having a stem cell transplant, may be at increased risk of the more severe complications of COVID-19 infection.
As a result, the rollout of vaccines is especially welcome for these vulnerable groups. However, these underlying medical conditions and the treatment that such patients receive as part of their care, may weaken the immune system.
The OCTAVE trial, which is funded by the Medical Research Council(MRC), is a collaborative research project involving the Universities of Birmingham, Glasgow, Oxford, Liverpool, Imperial College London and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
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In the Octave study, up to 5,000 of these patients, from around the UK, will be vaccinated as part of the NHS mass rollout.
Researchers will build on years of experience in understanding the immune system in the context of chronic conditions, to better determine the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in these clinically at-risk patient groups.
Professor Pam Kearns, Director of the University of Birmingham’s Cancer Research UK Clinical Trials Unit (CRCTU), which will be running the study, said: “Current evidence shows that people with these medical conditions may not obtain optimal protection from established vaccines.
“Patients with significant underlying diseases were generally excluded from COVID-19 vaccine studies to date – it is now important to confirm that the COVID-19 vaccines work well in such conditions.
“We are pleased to be supporting this important nationally collaborative study that will inform the best use of the COVID-19 vaccines to protect these vulnerable patients.”
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