37.1 percent of adolescent and young adult cancer survivors report vaccine hesitancy; higher odds of hesitancy for females<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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TUESDAY, June 29, 2021 (HealthDay News) — More than one-third of adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors report COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, according to a study published online June 29 in JNCI Cancer Spectrum<\/em>.<\/p>\n Austin R. Waters, M.S.P.H., from the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, and colleagues examined factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among AYA cancer survivors. Eligible participants were aged 18 years or older and were diagnosed with cancer as an AYA (age 15 to 39 years); 342 participants completed a cross-sectional survey.<\/p>\n The researchers found that 37.1 percent of participants reported COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Female survivors and survivors with a high school education or less reported higher odds of vaccine hesitancy compared with male or college graduate or higher counterparts in multivariable analysis (odds ratios, 1.81 and 3.15, respectively).<\/p>\n “Cancer survivors should not wait to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Oncology care providers and cancer centers should play an important role in encouraging young survivors to receive the vaccine,” Waters said in a statement. “To ensure equitable protection of vulnerable populations, special attention should be paid to vaccine hesitancy among at-risk groups such as young adult cancer survivors and groups that may have higher vaccine hesitancy such as female survivors or those with a high school education or less.”<\/p>\n