Vaccine-induced Immunity in Immunocompromised Patients (RESPONSE)

May 11, 2026 updated by: Sibylle C Mellinghoff, University of Cologne

Prospective Cohort-study for the Investigation of the Vac-cine-induced Immune Response After Vaccination Against RESPiratory Viral Infections in Immunocompromised Pa-tients With or Without Haemato-ONcological diseaSEs

Managing respiratory virus infections in immunocompromised patients requires a multidisciplinary approach, including vaccination, though its effectiveness is often suboptimal in these individuals.

In hematological patients, poor humoral immunogenicity is common, especially when the B cell axis is affected by disease or treatment, while T cell responses may offer better protection. Current immunologic data on these patients is limited, focusing mostly on serologic parameters. To address this, we will conduct an observational study analyzing early and late booster vaccinations, with a focus on virus-specific T cell responses in vaccinated patients.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Detailed Description

Respiratory virus infections are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality, partic-ularly among immunocompromised patients. These infections are caused by a varie-ty of viral pathogens, including influenza viruses, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), parainfluenza viruses, adenoviruses, rhinoviruses, and coronaviruses, among oth-ers. In the general population, these infections typically result in self-limiting ill-nesses; however, in individuals with compromised immune systems, such as those undergoing chemotherapy, organ transplant recipients, patients with haematological malignancies, and those with HIV, the consequences can be severe and often life-threatening. For example, patients with haematological and oncological diseases are at elevated risk for severe morbidity and mortality by influenza infections. Com-pared to influenza-associated hospitalization rates in the general population (37.9 per 100,000 person-years for persons age 50 to 64 years)1 patients with cancer were hospitalized at a rate of 219 per 100,000 person-years for patients younger than 65 years.

The immune system plays a crucial role in defending against viral pathogens. Im-munocompromised patients, due to either primary immune deficiencies or second-ary immunosuppression (e.g., from immunosuppressive therapies), have impaired immune responses that hinder the effective clearance of viral infections. This im-pairment can lead to prolonged viral shedding, increased risk of secondary bacterial infections, and more severe disease manifestations, including acute respiratory dis-tress syndrome (ARDS) and multi-organ failure. The management of respiratory vi-rus infections in immunocompromised patients requires a multidisciplinary ap-proach. Prophylactic measures, including vaccination and the use of antiviral prophylaxis, are crucial in reducing the incidence of these infections.

Given the significant impact of respiratory virus infections on immunocompromised patients, ongoing research is crucial to improve preventive strategies. This research includes studies on viral pathophysiology, host immune responses, and the devel-opment of optimal vaccination schedules. The emergence of new viral pathogens, such as SARS-CoV-2, underscores the importance of surveillance and prepared-ness in this vulnerable population.

Respiratory virus infections represent a major health concern for immunocompro-mised patients, necessitating comprehensive and specialised care. Continued ad-vancements in diagnostics, therapeutics, and preventive measures are vital to miti-gate the impact of these infections and improve the quality of life and survival of immunocompromised individuals.

The management of respiratory virus infections in immunocompromised patients requires a multidisciplinary approach and prophylactic measures, including vaccina-tion, to reduce the incidence and severity of these infections. However, the efficacy of vaccination is often suboptimal in immunocompromised individuals and not well assessed in clinical trials.

A poor humoral immunogenicity has been shown for most available vaccines in haematological patients. Especially affection of the B cell axis by either disease, treatment, or both, impacts humoral vaccine immune response.

The humoral vaccine-induced immune response facilitates early protection directly after vaccination, while long-term protection warrants antibody persistence as well as immune memory cells. Data from immunocompetent persons suggest that cell mediated immune response may be a better correlate of protection against virus in-fections in vaccinated patients with poor immune responses than humoral im-munity due to its major role in recovery from infection and in virus clearance.

Immunologic data in patients with haematological malignancies are generally scarce and mainly focus on serologic parameters. However, cellular response and especially T cell response seems often to be induced more reliably in those patients than humoral response as seen in other immunocompromised populations18 and other vaccines.

To close this knowledge gap, we will perform an observational study to prospectively analyse the effect of early and late booster vaccination with special focus on the virus-specific T cells. Samples will be collected from patients that have been vac-cinated as part of clinical routine.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

1000

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Locations

    • North Rhine-Westphalia
      • Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, 50937

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Immunocompromised patients vaccinated against respiratory virus infections or willing to be vaccinated

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Signed informed consent form
  • Patients with immunosuppression either by treatment or underlying diseases
  • Patients who are vaccinated or willing to be vaccinated against respiratory virus infections in ac-cordance with current recommendations
  • Age of 18 years or older

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients unwilling/ineligible for vaccination under current recommendations

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Humoral immune response after vaccination
Time Frame: 12 months
To compare antibody titres between different subgroups of immunocompromised patients after vaccination against respiratory virus infections
12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Cellular immune response after vaccination
Time Frame: 12 months
To analyse T cell response after vaccination against respiratory virus infections
12 months
Seroconversion
Time Frame: 12 months
To compare antibody response rates between dif-ferent subgroups of immunocompromised patients after vaccination against respiratory virus infections
12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

March 25, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

April 30, 2029

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 19, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 21, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

September 25, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 12, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 11, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 231244-NIS

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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