Humoral profiling of pediatric patients with cancer reveals robust immunity following anti‐SARS‐CoV‐2 vaccination superior to natural infection

Abstract

Background: Pediatric patients with cancer infected with COVID-19 may be at higher risk of severe disease and may be unable to mount an adequate response to the virus due to compromised immunity secondary to their cancer therapy.Procedure: This study presents immunologic analyses of 20 pediatric patients with cancer, on active chemotherapy or having previously received chemotherapy, and measures their immunoglobulin titers and activation of cellular immunity response to acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination compared with healthy pediatric controls.Results: Forty-three patients were enrolled, of which 10 were actively receiving chemotherapy, 10 had previously received chemotherapy, and 23 were healthy controls. Pediatric patients with cancer had similar immunoglobulin titers, antibody binding capacity, and effector function assay activity after vaccination against COVID-19 compared with healthy controls, though more variability in response was noted in the cohort actively receiving chemotherapy. Compared with acute infection, vaccination against COVID-19 produced superior immunoglobulin responses, particularly IgA1, IgG1, and IgG3, and elicited superior binding capacity and effector function in children with cancer and healthy controls.

Comment on: Humoral profiling of pediatric patients with cancer reveals robust immunity following anti‐SARS‐CoV‐2 vaccination superior to natural infection

“…parison to healthy pediatric controls, pediatric chemotherapy patients and those who had previously received chemotherapy had adequate immune activation following vaccination and acute infection. 1 However, there was evidence of variability in response for the patients who were receiving active chemotherapy. The importance of vaccination, even in those who have already contracted the disease, was highlighted by their finding that immunization against COVID-19 elicited greater immune responses compared to acute SARS-CoV-2 infection in pediatric cancer patients and healthy children.…”

“…The importance of vaccination, even in those who have already contracted the disease, was highlighted by their finding that immunization against COVID-19 elicited greater immune responses compared to acute SARS-CoV-2 infection in pediatric cancer patients and healthy children. 1 If neither the most recent clinical signals nor the most recent clinical markers are present, a silent COVID-19 must be ruled out. 2 A straightforward inquiry is whether any of the vaccine recipients had a history of asymptomatic COVID-19.…”