Covid vaccine and blood cancer

Page updated 30 September 2024

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has announced its advice for the covid-19 vaccination programme for autumn/winter 2024. In previous years, this was called the autumn booster in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the winter booster in Scotland.

The vaccination programme will start in England on 3 October 2024 and run until 20 December 2024.

In Scotland, it will start on 23 September 2024 and run until 31 January 2025.

In Wales, vaccinations will start on 1 October 2024.

In Northern Ireland, the vaccination programme starts on 7 October 2024.

• England: You can book a covid vaccination online, or by calling 119 free of charge. You may receive an invitation from the NHS but you do not need to wait for that.
• Scotland: You should receive an invitation for your covid and flu vaccinations by post, text or email, depending on your contact preferences.
• Wales: The NHS will contact you to let you know when and where you can have your vaccination.
• Northern Ireland: Contact your GP surgery or community pharmacy to arrange your vaccination. Enter your location here to find pharmacies that are offering covid vaccinations near you.

The JCVI says you should be offered a covid vaccination if you are:

• an adult aged 65 and over
• a resident in a care home for older adults
• aged 6 months to 64 years and immunosuppressed (as defined in tables 3 and 4 in the COVID-19 chapter of the Green Book). This includes people with blood cancer or a history of blood cancer.
• pregnant

In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, health and social care workers will also be offered a covid vaccination.

The JCVI says that although covid is around throughout the year, the threat is highest during the winter. For more information on why you should get a covid vaccination see our page about covid vaccine efficacy.

The Autumn covid vaccination programme will use the most up-to-date vaccines available. The main vaccines are the latest version of Pfizer (Comirnaty) and Moderna (Spikevax):

• Adults will have either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
• Children and young people aged 6 months to 17 years are advised to have the Pfizer vaccine.

Some people may be offered a different vaccine for specific reasons:

• People aged 12 and above can have the Novovax (Nuvaxovid) vaccine if other vaccines aren't clinically appropriate.
• People aged 16 and above can have the HIPRA (Bimervax) vaccine if other vaccines aren't clinically appropriate.

In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland household contacts will not be offered a covid vaccination on the NHS.

In Wales, household contacts can get an NHS covid vaccination this autumn if they ask for one.

Why are household contacts not being offered covid vaccinations this season?

According to the JCVI, current evidence suggests that covid vaccination does not stop people passing on or catching the variants of covid that are circulating now.

If you are immunosuppressed (you have a weak immune system), vaccination may not stop you getting covid, but it can stop you getting very sick and having to go to hospital. That is why it is important for people with blood cancer to get vaccinated this autumn/winter. Read our information about covid vaccine efficacy.

You can get a covid vaccination privately. This may be of interest if you live with, or have regular contact with, someone who is immunosuppressed and you don't qualify for your national vaccination programme.

Check with your local pharmacies whether they are able to offer this service. A vaccination can cost from £45 up to £100, depending on the provider and the vaccine type.

The JCVI's advice is that covid vaccinations should be around 6 months apart. The absolute minimum between doses is 3 months.

The covid vaccine schedule for people with blood cancer up to now has been:

• 1st primary dose – from around Jan 2021
• 2nd primary dose – from around April 2021
• 3rd primary dose – from around September 2021
• 4th dose (1st booster) – from around January 2022
• 5th dose (Spring 2022 booster) – from around April 2022
• 6th dose (Autumn 2022 booster) – from around September 2022
• 7th dose (Spring 2023 booster) – from around April 2023
• 8th dose (Autumn 2023 booster) – from around October 2023
• 9th dose (Spring 2024 vaccination) – from around April 2024

Regardless of how many doses you've had so far, you should get a vaccination when it is offered. Read the latest evidence about the effectiveness and safety of covid vaccination for people with blood cancer.

If you had the covid vaccine before having a stem cell transplant, you will need to be re-vaccinated after your transplant. Your transplant team will give you information on this, including when to have your vaccinations. The NHS recommends you have a course of three primary doses, followed by a booster dose.

NHS England has confirmed that the bivalent vaccines Comirnaty (Pfizer) and Spikevax (Moderna) can be used for both primary and booster vaccinations. Bivalent means the vaccines target two covid variants.

Anthony Nolan has more information about re-vaccination following a stem cell transplant.

Most people who are living with blood cancer and many who are in remission from blood cancer have a weakened immune system, which makes it harder to fight off viruses and other bugs. This is called immunosuppression. Immunosuppressed people are at higher risk of getting seriously ill from covid.

That's why, when covid vaccines first become available, people were prioritised for vaccination if they:

• had any type of blood cancer (leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma, MDS, MPN), whether they were on treatment or not
• were immunosuppressed as a result of blood cancer in the past
• had had a stem cell or bone marrow transplant in the past
• had any other underlying condition that meant they were classed as "clinically vulnerable" or "clinically extremely vulnerable".

Because immunosuppressed people are at higher risk from covid, household contacts (people who live most of the time with someone who is immunosuppressed) and unpaid carers were also prioritised for vaccination.

Going forward, people who are immunosuppressed, including most people with blood cancer, are being offered extra vaccinations. While covid vaccinations may not work as well for immunosuppressed people, there's evidence that repeated doses can offer better protection. People who are severely immunosuppressed may also be eligible for new antiviral treatments if they get covid.

We have more information about research into how effective covid vaccinations are for people with blood cancer.

If you have any patients affected by blood cancer, you can signpost them to Blood Cancer UK for support and information.

We are also very happy to speak to GPs and other healthcare professionals if helpful - contact us for information about blood cancer and coronavirus.

Our support line offers emotional and practical support. It is free to call on 0808 2080 888 or email [email protected]

Our website has up-to-date information about blood cancer, coronavirus, and living with blood cancer.

Like all vaccines, the covid vaccines can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.

Most side effects are mild and should go away within a week. Common side effects include:

• a sore arm from the injection
• feeling tired
• a headache
• feeling achy
• mild flu-like symptoms
• feeling or being sick

Each vaccine comes with a patient leaflet that lists all the known side effects.

• Pfizer (Comirnaty) vaccine patient leaflet
• Moderna (Spikevax) vaccine patient leaflet
• Novovax (Nuvaxovid) vaccine patient leaflet
• HIPRA (Bimervax) vaccine patient leaflet

Healthcare workers who administer the vaccine can tell you about any side effects and are trained in what to watch out for.

Practical advice from public health bodies to stop covid and flu spreading includes:

• avoiding contact with others when unwell
• washing hands frequently with soap and water, or using hand sanitiser
• catching coughs and sneezes in a tissue ("catch it, bin it, kill it")
• wearing a face mask if visiting someone with a weakened immune system
• ventilating shared spaces as much as possible
• getting vaccinated if you are eligible.

Call our free and confidential support line on 0808 2080 888. If you're not able to get through straight away, please leave a message and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.

You can also email us if you prefer to get in contact that way. We'll usually get back to you within two working days.

Talk to other people with blood cancer on our Online Community Forum – there is a group for coronavirus questions and support.

You can also find out what's helping other people affected by blood cancer through coronavirus and beyond in our pages on living well with or after blood cancer.

The following companies have provided funding for our coronavirus support, but have had no further input: AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Celgene, Gilead, Incyte, Kyowa Kirin, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda.