Blood cancer sufferers face ‘family risk’

PEOPLE living with a blood cancer patient should be prioritised for inoculation in a bid to stop them passing on coronavirus, a charity has said.

Sufferers are considered clinically extremely vulnerable and are in the fourth highest priority group, so should be offered a shot by mid-February.

But Blood Cancer UK said patients with weakened immune systems often do not respond as well to vaccines and may still be at risk after having the jab.

The charity has written to Health Secretary Matt Hancock andVaccine Deployment Minister Nadhim Zahawi, urging them to prioritise household members of people with blood cancer, in the hope this will reduce their risk.

Vulnerable

Blood Cancer UK chief executive Gemma Peters said: “We are not suggesting adults living with someone with blood cancer should be as high a priority as healthcare workers.

“But it is clearly wrong that a 40-yearold who lives with someone with leukaemia is no higher a priority than a 40-year-old who lives on their own.

“We know that people with blood cancer are extremely vulnerable to the coronavirus, and that one of the big risks to them is members of their household bringing it into the home.”

Blood cancer raises the risk of severe Covid-19 by more than almost any other health condition, the charity said.

It is not yet known whether Covid-19 shots are less effective among people with blood cancer or whether those who have a jab can still transmit the virus.