Influenza Vaccine

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JACK5IE
JACK5IE Member Posts: 760
edited October 2020 in Stage IV/Metastatic Breast Cancer ONLY

Does anyone here with medical knowledge know if getting the influenza vaccine can affect blood test results? I had the flu shot last week and yesterday I had my blood drawn at the MO. The numbers seemed slightly skewed, even the breast cancer marker. Just wondering. Thanks.

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  • BevJen
    BevJen Member Posts: 2,523
    edited October 2020

    Jack5ie,

    I don't know the answer about the flu shot, but I do remember someone posting here maybe a year ago who had had a shingrex shot and thought that it had skewed her blood numbers, including markers. So makes some sense to me. Hope others will chime in.

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  • jhl
    jhl Member Posts: 333
    edited October 2020

    Hi Jack5ie,

    The influenza vaccine can indeed increase inflammatory markers transiently after administration. All vaccines are designed to stimulate our immune systems so you might see a rise in some of them. Clinical decisions should be made after inflammatory markers go back to normal.

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  • JACK5IE
    JACK5IE Member Posts: 760
    edited October 2020

    Thank you both!

    jhl...does that include CA 27-29?

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  • jhl
    jhl Member Posts: 333
    edited October 2020

    JACK5IE,

    CA 27-29 is an antigen, not an antibody. So, no - it is not a marker of inflammation. Elevated CA 27-29 can be seen in benign conditions as well as other malignancies. An influenza vaccine should not cause a rise in CA 27-29. Sadly, CA 27-29 is not a very specific tumor marker for breast cancer since not all breast cancers will produce it. After treatment, it can stay elevated for 30-90 days in about 1/3 of treated patients.

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  • JACK5IE
    JACK5IE Member Posts: 760
    edited October 2020

    jhl...sorry but I'm being dumb with this. But I read on this in the CDC site.

    Is the flu vaccine an antigen?

    Recombinant Flu Vaccines

    Antigens are features of the influenza virus that are recognized by the immune system and that trigger a protective immune response. Most flu vaccines are designed to trigger an immune response against the HAs of circulating influenza vaccines.

    So that sounds like maybe it can affect the CA 27-29 too? Basically I'm just wondering if the flu vaccine can cause the CA 27-29 to go up a few points.

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  • JACK5IE
    JACK5IE Member Posts: 760
    edited October 2020

    I also found this.

    What really happens when I get a #Flu vaccine?

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