Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) After COVID-19 mRNA Vaccination. Severe Autoimmune Reaction

June 7, 2023 – Wales – 17 year old Leah Rogers died after arriving home from a holiday in Majorca with friends 

• came back from holiday in Spain in May 2023
• fell ill, was diagnosed with tonsillitis, was given antibiotics
• didn’t improve, returned to hospital several times, was diagnosed with glandular fever (had a sore throat)
• blood tests showed liver failure
• was taken to ICU, became confused, was intubated and died on June 7, 2023, three weeks after she began feeling ill.
• She was diagnosed with HLH (Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis) just before death

Oct. 14, 2023 – Burnaby, BC – Ryan Watchorn was diagnosed with a 1 in 10 million lymphoma as well as HLH.

Oct. 5, 2023 – Largo, FL – Vanessa’s Medical Mystery – Vanessa Waker works at Veteran Health Admin. For 5 weeks she has had fevers, enlarged spleen, and liver problems. Diagnosed with HLH.

Sep. 6, 2023 – Quebec City, QC – Florence Champagne is a young woman just diagnosed with HLH and Lymphoma.

Aug. 23, 2023 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – 48 year old doctor Dr.Oliver Antequera is a clinical research medical director at Novartis, developed fever-like symptoms on June 23 and was diagnosed with AML Leukemia with HLH.

June 4, 2023 – Jacksonville, FL – 23 year old Braden Small was in his last semester at Florida State University pursuing B.Sc in IT. In February he started feeling ill, on March 19 he was diagnosed with HLH Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis and died 11 weeks later on June 4.

Nov. 13, 2022 – MMA Fighter 38 year old Anthony Rumble Johnson died on Nov. 13, 2022, after a battle with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma and HLH.

Jan. 28, 2022 (VAERS 2082404) – 33 year old man from Louisiana had 2nd dose of Pfizer mRNA, 3 days later developed fever, chills – after multiple hospital visits, diagnosed and died from refractory HLH complicated by cytopenias, polymicrobial infections & multi-organ failure.

Literature Review

Oct. 9, 2023 – Han-Qi Zhang et al – An analysis of reported cases of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) after COVID-19 vaccination.

• 17 cases of HLH after COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine reviewed (14 Pfizer, 3 Moderna)
• outcome: 1 Pfizer died, 1 Moderna died
• mean age 48 years, affects men and women equally
• most typical clinical presentation was high fever, myalgia, and fatigue.
• Some patients presented hypotension and loss of weight and appetite
• mean time from mRNA vaccination to symptoms is 16 days.
• “HLH, also called hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS), is an acute and severe hyperinflammatory disease characterized by cytokine increase, progressive cytopenia, and hyperferritinemia.”
• “The pathophysiological mechanisms of HLH tend to vary, but one common pathogenesis is cytokine storm (similar to COVID-19 cytokine storms)
• “The occurrence of HLH is highly related to the excessive and disordered immune response after COVID-19 vaccination.
• In the pathogenesis of HLH, the cytokine storm plays a key role in the entire process, especially IL-1β and IL-2 R.
• Anakinra, an IL-1 receptor antagonist, has been used in treating COVID-19 vaccine-induced HLH and has been shown to save lives

Mar. 23, 2023 – Iwamura et al – Hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis case with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis following SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination

• 61M Japanese man developed fever, polyarthralgia and rash 2 weeks after 1st dose of Moderna COVID-19 mRNA vaccine
• he was diagnosed with HUVS and HLH

Oct. 28, 2022 – Shimada et al – A case of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis after BNT162b2 COVID-19 (Comirnaty®) vaccination

• 85F Japanese woman developed malaise, vomiting and high fever on 12th day after receiving 2nd dose of Pfizer vaccine.
• Tests: Neutropenia, hyperferritinemia, bone marrow exam showed HLH
• Treatment: GSCF and methylprednisolone

Sep. 2022 – Awan et al – COVID-19 vaccination–related hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis presenting as acute liver failure

• We describe a patient who developed acute liver failure secondary to HLH after receiving a second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

Mar. 2022 – Vernon Wu et al – Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis following COVID-19 mRNA vaccination

• 60M developed altered mental status and slurred speech 6 days after 1st dose of Pfizer mRNA. Diagnosed with HLH.
• 32F developed high fevers 4 weeks after 2nd dose of Moderna, anemia, hyperferritinemia and elevated LFTs. Diagnosed with HLH.
• Reviewed 50 cases reported to VAERS:
  • 34 Pfizer, 14 Moderna, 2 J&J
  • 7/50 died = 14% fatality rate

Feb. 2022 – Marie-Lisa Hieber et al – Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination

• 24F white female in Germany had 1st Pfizer mRNA jab
• for next 10 days she had fever and fatibue
• day 13: fever, chills
• day 16: emergency department, painful neck and supraclavicular lymph nodes
• diagnosed with HLH
• Treated with: IVIG, dexamethasone 40mg/kd, only resolved with Anakinra

My Take…

HLH Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis is an extremely serious auto-immune reaction to Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines.

Key facts:

• Potentially lethal (14% of cases are fatal)
• affects men and women equally, mean age 48
• Clinically presents like sepsis and doctors may treat it as such with antibiotics
• Patients present with fever, chills, malaise, ~10-15 days after mRNA vaccination
• they’ll have pancytopenia (low blood counts)
• they’ll have an enlarged spleen (splenomegaly)
• they’ll have cytokine storm
• and then proceed to acute liver failure, hyperferritinemia
• bone marrow biopsy will show hemophagocytosis
• some cases are associated with leukemia or lymphoma diagnoses as well
• Anakinra, an IL-1 receptor antagonist, has been used in treating COVID-19 vaccine-induced HLH and has saved lives

As of September 11 & 12, 2023, FDA and Health Canada are recommending another round of COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine booster shots and this time they are targeting young people and children as young as 6 months old.

HLH is a potentially fatal auto-immune reaction to Pfizer & Moderna mRNA vaccines, that must be disclosed and discussed by a doctor during informed consent.

Dedicated to 33 year old Brandon Pollet of Louisiana: