In a survey-based study published in Pediatric Blood & Cancer that included 130 caregivers of childhood cancer survivors, 21% of caregivers expressed hesitancy to vaccinate themselves and 29% expressed hesitancy to vaccinate their children who had survived cancer.
Caregivers who expressed confidence in the federal government’s response to COVID-19 were 6-times more likely to express willingness to self-vaccinate and were 3-times more likely to express willingness to vaccinate their children.
Caregivers who reported that they were hesitant to vaccinate expressed concerns about the swiftness of COVID-19 vaccine development and insufficient safety and efficacy data in children, particularly children with cancer.
"Results suggest that COVID-19 vaccination outreach to hesitant caregivers might be more effective when delivered by non-governmental organizations, including pediatric oncology care teams,” said senior author Kyle Walsh, PhD, of the Duke Cancer Institute. “Such providers are well-positioned to discuss potential risks and benefits of vaccination and to update families as longer-term outcomes data emerge from vaccine trials and registries."
Additional Information
Link to Study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pbc.29443
About Journal
Pediatric Blood & Cancer publishes the highest quality manuscripts describing basic and clinical investigations of blood disorders and malignant diseases of childhood including diagnosis, treatment, epidemiology, etiology, biology, and molecular and clinical genetics of these diseases as they affect children, adolescents, and young adults. Pediatric Blood & Cancer will also include studies on such treatment options as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, immunology, and gene therapy.
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