How to book a covid vaccine if you have blood cancer

The next covid vaccination programme in the UK starts in September-October 2025:

• In England: the programme will run from October 1 until 31 January 2026. Booking is open on the National Booking Service.
• In Scotland: the programme started on 15 September and will end on 31 January 2026. If you're eligible, NHS Scotland will contact you with details of how to book.
• In Wales: the programme will start in early October and is expected to end by early December. Eligible people will be invited by letter.
• In Northern Ireland: the programme will run from 6 October to 31 January 2026. You can book online.

Adults aged 18 and over are most likely to have the Moderna mRNA (Spikevax) vaccine, or the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA (Comirnaty) vaccine.

Children and young people aged 6 months to 17 years will have an appropriate dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA (Comirnaty) vaccine.

You may be offered a free flu vaccination at the same time as your covid vaccination, if you are eligible.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has given the same advice for autumn/winter as it did for the spring programme. It advises that the following groups should be vaccinated:

• adults aged 75 years and over
• residents in a care home for older adults
• people aged 6 months and over who have a weakened immune system because of a health condition or medical treatment (as defined in the ‘immunosuppression’ sections of tables 3 or 4 in the COVID-19 chapter of the Green Book). This includes people with blood cancer or a history of blood cancer.

Covid can be very serious for some people and vaccination is one of the best ways to protect yourself against it. Even if you've been vaccinated before, your protection fades over time. That's why it's important to keep up to date with your vaccinations.

Evidence from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) shows that people who had a vaccination last spring were less likely to be admitted to hospital for up to two months afterwards, compared to people who did not have one.

For more information about why you should get a covid vaccination, see our page 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.

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".

Going forward, people who are immunosuppressed, including most people with blood cancer, are being offered regular 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)
• Moderna (Spikevax)

Healthcare workers who administer the vaccine can tell you about any side effects and are trained 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 pharmaceutical companies have funded this information but have had no input into the content or direction of the project: AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Celgene, Gilead, Incyte, Kyowa Kirin, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda.

Read about how we work with the pharmaceutical industry.