Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy
The BNT162b2 vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 has a proven efficacy and a favorable safety profile. In cancer patients under immunotherapy in the form of immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the efficacy of the vaccine has not been thoroughly studied, while a theoretical concern has also been raised about...
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MDPI AG
2022-08-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/14/15/3791 |
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| author | Panagiotis T. Diamantopoulos Christina-Nefeli Kontandreopoulou Aikaterini Gkoufa Elena Solomou Amalia Anastasopoulou Eleni Palli Panagiotis Kouzis Spyros Bouros Mihalis Samarkos Gkikas Magiorkinis Helen Gogas |
| author_facet | Panagiotis T. Diamantopoulos Christina-Nefeli Kontandreopoulou Aikaterini Gkoufa Elena Solomou Amalia Anastasopoulou Eleni Palli Panagiotis Kouzis Spyros Bouros Mihalis Samarkos Gkikas Magiorkinis Helen Gogas |
| author_sort | Panagiotis T. Diamantopoulos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The BNT162b2 vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 has a proven efficacy and a favorable safety profile. In cancer patients under immunotherapy in the form of immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the efficacy of the vaccine has not been thoroughly studied, while a theoretical concern has also been raised about triggering immune-related adverse events (irAEs) by the vaccine. We conducted a prospective, non-interventional study on the immunogenicity and safety of the BNT162b2 vaccine in patients with advanced or metastatic melanoma treated with ICIs. Blood samples were obtained 0–4 days before the first dose and 12–21 days after the second dose of the vaccine for the quantification of the SARS-CoV-2 anti-spike antibody using an ELISA and immunophenotyping of the T and myeloid cell subpopulations. The active recording of AEs for a two-month period was conducted. Forty patients were included in the study. All but one (97.3%) achieved seroconversion after two doses of the vaccine and no correlations of the antibody titers with any of the studied parameters (age, gender, stage and duration of the disease, type of ICI, previous treatment, etc.) were found. Moreover, no differences in the subpopulations of the T cells (including the T-regulatory cells) or the myeloid cells were found pre- and post-vaccination. All AEs were low-grade, while one case of arthritis exacerbation was noted. The seroconversion rate in the studied population was high and was comparable to that of healthy subjects, while no major safety issues were raised during the safety follow-up. Finally, no derangements in the subpopulations of T cells or myeloid cells were noted. This is the first study focusing on the immunogenicity, safety, and effect of anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines on the blood-cell immunophenotype status of patients with melanoma treated with ICIs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:09:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6f5fd02b0a8b4ffbba6b96a75492c002 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6694 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:09:29Z |
| publishDate | 2022-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cancers |
| spelling | doaj.art-6f5fd02b0a8b4ffbba6b96a75492c0022023-12-01T22:52:18ZengMDPI AGCancers2072-66942022-08-011415379110.3390/cancers14153791Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with ImmunotherapyPanagiotis T. Diamantopoulos0Christina-Nefeli Kontandreopoulou1Aikaterini Gkoufa2Elena Solomou3Amalia Anastasopoulou4Eleni Palli5Panagiotis Kouzis6Spyros Bouros7Mihalis Samarkos8Gkikas Magiorkinis9Helen Gogas10First Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceDepartment of Internal Medicine, University of Patras Medical School, 26500 Rion, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceDepartment of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceFirst Department of Internal Medicine, Laikon General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, GreeceThe BNT162b2 vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 has a proven efficacy and a favorable safety profile. In cancer patients under immunotherapy in the form of immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the efficacy of the vaccine has not been thoroughly studied, while a theoretical concern has also been raised about triggering immune-related adverse events (irAEs) by the vaccine. We conducted a prospective, non-interventional study on the immunogenicity and safety of the BNT162b2 vaccine in patients with advanced or metastatic melanoma treated with ICIs. Blood samples were obtained 0–4 days before the first dose and 12–21 days after the second dose of the vaccine for the quantification of the SARS-CoV-2 anti-spike antibody using an ELISA and immunophenotyping of the T and myeloid cell subpopulations. The active recording of AEs for a two-month period was conducted. Forty patients were included in the study. All but one (97.3%) achieved seroconversion after two doses of the vaccine and no correlations of the antibody titers with any of the studied parameters (age, gender, stage and duration of the disease, type of ICI, previous treatment, etc.) were found. Moreover, no differences in the subpopulations of the T cells (including the T-regulatory cells) or the myeloid cells were found pre- and post-vaccination. All AEs were low-grade, while one case of arthritis exacerbation was noted. The seroconversion rate in the studied population was high and was comparable to that of healthy subjects, while no major safety issues were raised during the safety follow-up. Finally, no derangements in the subpopulations of T cells or myeloid cells were noted. This is the first study focusing on the immunogenicity, safety, and effect of anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines on the blood-cell immunophenotype status of patients with melanoma treated with ICIs.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/14/15/3791melanomaimmunotherapyvaccinationimmunogenicityvaccine |
| spellingShingle | Panagiotis T. Diamantopoulos Christina-Nefeli Kontandreopoulou Aikaterini Gkoufa Elena Solomou Amalia Anastasopoulou Eleni Palli Panagiotis Kouzis Spyros Bouros Mihalis Samarkos Gkikas Magiorkinis Helen Gogas Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy Cancers melanoma immunotherapy vaccination immunogenicity vaccine |
| title | Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy |
| title_full | Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy |
| title_fullStr | Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy |
| title_full_unstemmed | Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy |
| title_short | Immunogenicity and Safety of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Melanoma Treated with Immunotherapy |
| title_sort | immunogenicity and safety of the bnt162b2 mrna covid 19 vaccine in patients with melanoma treated with immunotherapy |
| topic | melanoma immunotherapy vaccination immunogenicity vaccine |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/14/15/3791 |
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