DETROIT – Since the coronavirus pandemic began, Dr. Frank McGeorge has been keeping viewers up-to-date and informed on all fronts. He’s been answering your questions about the vaccine, the vaccination process and more.
Read: More answers to questions about coronavirus
Should a healthy 15-year-old who never had COVID get the vaccine? Heard about some fertility issues.
While studies are ongoing, there is no data to suggest the vaccines might cause fertility issues. In fact, the most current data indicates vaccinated women have not had difficulty conceiving.
I keep hearing that there are studies indicating the vaccines cause cancer. Is this true?
There are no studies that even suggest that the COVID vaccines could cause cancer. The FDA and CDC have been very clear about any potential issues with the vaccines, down to reporting the very rare adverse events.
Would you comment on the Lambda and Epsilon variants? It appears that they may be able to evade any protection given by both the vaccines as well as convalescent plasma.
There are elements of their spike protein that suggest it is possible both of these variants are not only more transmissible, but may also evade vaccine-induced immunity more effectively. But without additional study it is impossible to say that with certainty. The best answer right now is to get as many people vaccinated as possible to lessen the chance either could become dominant.
It is being reported that the majority of those hospitalized with COVID are not vaccinated. I hear those who have COVID say they don’t need the vaccine because they have immunity from having it already. So what percentage of those hospitalized are those who have COVID/no vaccination vs. those who have not had COVID/no vaccination?
Unfortunately that data isn’t directly available. A recently published CDC study gets close to answering that question. Looking specifically at people who were previously infected, it asked how much protection the vaccine gives against being reinfected and it found people who were previously infected and unvaccinated were twice as likely to become reinfected as previously infected people who were vaccinated.
Is the vaccine OK for people with asthma? An acquaintance insists she cannot have the vaccine because she has asthma and allergies -- however, she will not discuss it with her doctor.
The vaccine is safe in people with asthma. In fact, they would benefit significantly from the protection. I would continue to encourage your friend to discuss it with her doctor.