SIXTY fully vaccinated cancer patients received the third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine at the National Cancer Institute in Putrajaya today.

Institute medical deputy director 1 Dr Puteri Norliza Megat Ramli said they were patients being treated at the IKN and were chosen for the third dose because they had low immunity.

“Administering the third dose will prevent them from being infected with Covid-19 or from severe complications if infected. We will identify other cancer patients who will be given the third dose,” she told Bernama after observing the process of administering the third dose to the patients.

One of the recipients, 51-year-old Aldrin Henry Serub, said he wanted to get the third dose as it could help protect him from being infected by the virus.

“So, when I received a call from (the institute) last Wednesday, I immediately confirmed my attendance. As a cancer patient, I have been fully vaccinated, but I need the third dose for complete protection against Covid-19,” he said.

“There is nothing to be worried about (the third dose) because I am still alive after being fully vaccinated. It is for our own good,” he said, adding that he did not experience any side effects after getting the third dose.

Norashikin San Abdullah said she too decided to get the third dose to protect herself against Covid-19.

“I didn’t experience any side effects either. Everybody must get the third dose to protect ourselves from the virus,” said the 68-year-old.

According to Puteri Norliza, the third dose is specifically for those with low immunity and is given 28 days after they have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, while senior citizens and frontliners would have to wait for at least six months after being fully vaccinated to get the booster jab.

A third dose is given to people who have an eligible medical condition that causes a suppressed immune system, while a booster shot is an additional dose given to the rest of the population after the protection provided by the original shot(s) begins to decrease with time.

Puteri Norliza said, so far, the institute had only been tasked with administering the third dose to cancer patients using the Pfizer-BioNTech Comirnaty vaccine.

Meanwhile, the institute’s occupational safety and health unit head Dr Melvyn Chin Yin Chung said the third dose was voluntary and the recipients must sign a new consent form before they are inoculated.

“The recipients will be given a physical card to confirm that they had been vaccinated,” he said, adding that the institute would monitor the health of patients who received the third dose.

On October 13, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the ministry would start to administer Covid-19 vaccine booster doses to senior citizens aged 60 and above and frontliners who completed their vaccination at least six months ago.

He also said that the dispensing of an extra dose would be given to individuals who have low immunity (immunocompromised) such as cancer patients, organ recipients and kidney patients undergoing dialysis.

The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme began on February 24 this year as a move to control the pandemic. To date, 91.2%, or 21,355,550, of the adult population have been fully vaccinated. – Bernama, October 15, 2021.