Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Mar 1;44(3):109-113.
doi: 10.1097/COC.0000000000000788.

Vaccination and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Does Vaccination Increase the Risk of Immune-related Adverse Events? A Systematic Review of Literature

Anne-Laure Desage  1 , Wafa Bouleftour  1 , Romain Rivoirard  1 , Nicolas Magne  2 , Olivier Collard  1 , Pierre Fournel  1 , Claire Tissot  1
Affiliations

Vaccination and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Does Vaccination Increase the Risk of Immune-related Adverse Events? A Systematic Review of Literature

Anne-Laure Desage et al. Am J Clin Oncol. .

Abstract

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have become part of cancer treatments. Their main side effects are immune-related adverse events (irAEs). So far, there has been no recommendation regarding routine vaccinations during ICIs treatment. Clinicians are aware of the risk of irAEs increases in this specific situation. The aim of this review of literature is to summarize the main studies about vaccination and ICIs interactions.

Methods: A systematic assessment of literature articles was performed by searching in PubMed (MEDLINE), and major oncology meeting following PRISMA guidelines.

Results: This review highlights the lack of literature. Indeed, most of the studies published were about influenza vaccination. Vaccination for patients under ICIs causes a humoral response and seems to be associated with an increase rate of seroconversion. Interestingly vaccination may provoke irAEs in ICIs-treated patients. So far, inactivated vaccines have not been contraindicated during ICI treatment.

Conclusion: Larger prospective studies are needed in order to define a consensus on the use of vaccines under immunotherapy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Postow MA, Sidlow R, Hellmann MD. Immune-related adverse events associated with immune checkpoint blockade. N Engl J Med. 2018;378:158–168.
    1. Thapa B, Roopkumar J, Kim AS, et al. Incidence and clinical pattern of immune related adverse effects (irAE) due to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). J Clin Oncol. 2019;37(suppl):e14151.
    1. Cooksley CD, Avritscher EBC, Bekele BN, et al. Epidemiology and outcomes of serious influenza-related infections in the cancer population. Cancer. 2005;104:618–628.
    1. Pedrazzoli P, Piralla A, Valentino F, et al. Update of the recommendations of the Italian Society of Medical Oncology on vaccination for seasonal influenza and pneumococcal infection in patients with cancer: focus on prevention of pneumonia. Eur J Cancer Care (Engl). 2018;27:e12817.
    1. Nordøy T, Aaberge IS, Husebekk A, et al. Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy show adequate serological response to vaccinations against influenza virus and Streptococcus pneumoniae . Med Oncol. 2002;19:71–78.

Publication types

MeSH terms