Battling cancer is a challenging and exhausting disease for both the patient and their loved ones. The life-threatening illness can certainly take a toll on one’s physical and mental health and has the potential to change daily life indefinitely. Cancer and cancer treatments can weaken an individual’s immune system and make it difficult to fight off infections and to recover from a common cold or flu symptoms. Any cancer therapy can lower the immune system, which increases the risk of catching the flu. With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic coinciding with this year’s flu season, cancer patients should be aware of how the flu can affect their bodies. All cancer patients should consult with their health care team about the necessity of flu vaccination for themselves and those around them.
Here’s what you should know about Cancer and the Flu.
1. Cancer patients should get vaccinated against the flu.
Flu vaccination is especially important for people with cancer or a history of cancer because they are at increased risk of developing serious flu complications. Flu shots (injectable influenza vaccines) are approved for use in those with cancer and other health conditions. The flu shot has a long, established safety record in people with cancer.
2. Cancer survivors should get vaccinated against the flu.
Flu vaccination is especially important for people with cancer, as well as those who are cancer survivors, because they are at high risk for developing complications from the flu. Cancer survivors who had certain types of cancer, such as lymphoma or leukemia, in the past are at higher risk for complications from the flu. The American Cancer Society recommends that cancer survivors receive the flu shot in October to give the body ample time to make antibodies. However, those who did not get their flu vaccine in October can still get it later in the flu season to protect them throughout the remainder of the season.
3. Family members and caregivers should also get the flu vaccine.
Cancer patients and survivors may be at higher risk for complications from the flu, so it’s important for their caregivers and family members to take steps to prevent the flu from spreading. Flu vaccine is recommended for people who live with or care for a person at high-risk for flu complications. Vaccination of cancer patients and their household contacts is an important strategy for keeping cancer patients safe and healthy. Before receiving any vaccines, cancer survivors and cancer patients should talk to their health care provider about their cancer, cancer treatment, risk factors for the vaccine-preventable diseases, and to find out if they should receive the vaccine, and the best time for them to get it.
Visit www.cdc.gov/cancer/flu for more information.