Prospective Trial of Vaccine Responses Against Pneumococcus and Influenza in Adult Cancer Patients 65 Years of Age and Older

Infections due to influenza and pneumococcus can be very serious and cause death. Anyone can get these infections. However, some people are at greater risk from the disease, including people 65 and older, the very young, and people with special health problems such as people with certain types of cancer, heart, lung, or kidney disease, or diabetes. Influenza can cause a very serious lung infection (pneumonia) and increase the risk of stroke and heart attacks. Pneumococcal disease can lead to serious infections in the lungs (pneumonia), the blood (bacteremia), and the covering of the brain (meningitis). People with the special health problems mentioned above are even more likely to die from the disease. Although there are drugs to treat these infections, they are not always effective. This makes prevention of the disease through vaccination even more important.

This study will look at the body's response to influenza and pneumococcal vaccination. We want to see how well they it will protect. Immunization is the same as vaccination. Our goal is to protect as much as we can. We are doing the study because more information is needed to see how well older patients with cancer respond to these vaccines and how well they protect against disease caused by influenza and pneumococcus.