As the Mail Online reports, BCG vaccine, which protects against tuberculosis, is used to treat bladder cancer patients with non-invasive tumours – it is administered directly into the bladder to help the immune system fight the cancer.
Furthermore, bladder cancer patients who receive this therapy are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s, suggests finding from a recent Israeli study.
The mechanisms involved are unclear. Some suggest vaccines can ‘train’ the immune system, strengthening its defences.
This portends potentially positive outcomes for the current vaccination programme that extends beyond containing COVID-19.