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Evidence shows for patients with a type of leukaemia, pausing BTKi therapy for COVID-19 vaccination does not improve antibody responses to the vaccine

Woman receiving vaccination

Blood cancer patients who receive a type of anti-cancer therapy should continue to take the drug while having COVID-19 vaccinations, a new study suggests.

The findings of a clinical trial led by the University of Birmingham and the Oxford Clinical Trials Research Unit (OCTRU) based at NDORMS, University of Oxford, have been published in Lancet Haematology.

They suggest that patients with a type of blood cancer called Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia (CLL) who are being treated with Bruton Tyrosine Kinase inhibitors (BTKi), should continue their therapy while receiving COVID-19 vaccination.

The IMPROVE study investigated whether a three-week pause in BTKi therapy around the time of COVID-19 vaccination would improve the antibody response in patients with CLL, compared to continuing treatment. CLL is the commonest adult leukaemia and is associated with an increased risk of infection. People with CLL often have lower antibody responses to vaccination than the general population. This finding is most noticeable in those taking a BTKi drug such as ibrutinib or acalabrutinib.

 

Read the full story on the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences website.