No, COVID-19 vaccines don’t cause ‘turbo cancer’

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What you need to know

  • COVID-19 vaccines do not cause “turbo cancer” or contain SV40, a virus that has been suspected of causing cancer.
  • There is no link between rising cancer rates and COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines is a safe, free way to support long-term health.

Myths that COVID-19 vaccines cause cancer have been circulating since the vaccines were first developed. These false claims resurfaced last month after Princess Kate Middleton announced that she is undergoing cancer treatment, with some vaccine opponents falsely claiming Middleton has a “turbo cancer” caused by COVID-19 vaccines.

Here’s what we know: “Turbo cancer” is a made-up term for a fake phenomenon, and there is strong evidence that COVID-19 vaccines do not cause cancer or increase cancer risk.

Read on to learn how to recognize false claims about COVID-19 vaccines and cancer.


Do COVID-19 vaccines contain cancer-causing ingredients?

No. Some vaccine opponents claim that COVID-19 vaccines contain SV40, a virus that has been suspected of causing cancer. This claim is false.

A piece of SV40’s DNA sequence—called a “promoter”—was used as starting material to develop COVID-19 vaccines, but the virus itself is not present in the vaccines. The promoter does not contain the part of the virus that enters the cell nucleus, so it poses no risk.

COVID-19 vaccines and their ingredients have been rigorously studied in millions of people worldwide and have been determined to be safe. The National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society agree that COVID-19 vaccines do not increase cancer risk or accelerate cancer growth.

Why are cancer rates rising in the U.S.?

Since the 1990s, cancer rates have been on the rise globally and in the U.S., most notably in people under 50. Increased cancer screening may partially explain the rising number of cancer diagnoses. Exposure to air pollution and lifestyle factors like tobacco use, alcohol use, and diet may also be contributing factors.

What are the benefits of staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines?

Staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines is a safe way to protect our long-term health. COVID-19 vaccines prevent severe illness, hospitalization, death, and long COVID.

The CDC says staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines is a safer and more reliable way to build protection against COVID-19 than getting sick from COVID-19.

For more information, talk to your health care provider.

This article first appeared on Public Good News and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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  • Spreading Mental Health Awareness

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    It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

    Have a question or a request? You can always hit “reply” to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom!

    In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

    As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

    So, no question/request too big or small

    Request: more people need to be aware of suicidal tendencies and what they can do to ward them off

    That’s certainly a very important topic! We’ll cover that properly in one of our Psychology Sunday editions. In the meantime, we’ll mention a previous special that we did, that was mostly about handling depression (in oneself or a loved one), and obviously there’s a degree of crossover:

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  • Move – by Caroline Williams

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    • Get 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, says the American Heart Association
    • There are over 10,000 minutes per week, says the pocket calculator

    Is 150/10,000 really the goal here? Really?

    For Caroline Williams, the answer is no.

    In this book that’s practically a manifesto, she outlines the case that:

    • Humans evolved to move
    • Industrialization and capitalism scuppered that
    • We now spend far too long each day without movement

    Furthermore, for Williams this isn’t just an anthropological observation, it’s a problem to be solved, because:

    • Our lack of movement is crippling us—literally
    • Our stagnation affects not just our bodies, but also our minds
      • (again literally—there’s a direct correlation with mental health)
    • We urgently need to fix this

    So, what now, do we need to move in to the gym and become full-time athletes to clock up enough hours of movement? No.

    Williams convincingly argues the case (using data from supercentenarian “blue zones” around the world) that even non-exertive movement is sufficient. In other words, you don’t have to be running; walking is great. You don’t have to be lifting weights; doing the housework or gardening will suffice.

    From that foundational axiom, she calls on us to find ways to build our life around movement… rather than production-efficiency and/or convenience. She gives plenty of tips for such too!

    Bottom line: some books are “I couldn’t put it down!” books. This one’s more of a “I got the urge to get up and get moving!” book.

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  • Getting COMFY – by Jordan Gross

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    It’s easy to see how good “morning people” seem to have it; it’s harder, it seems, to become one.

    And, if we’re forced by circumstance to be the morning person we’re not? We all-too-easily find ourselves greeting each coming day without the joy that, in an ideal world, we might.

    So, is it possible to learn this power? Jordan Gross has it mapped out for it us…

    The “COMFY” of the title is indeed an acronym, and it stands for:

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    • Openness
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    • You

    There’s a chapter explaining each in detail, and they’re bookended with other chapters explaining more about the whys and the hows.

    As you might expect, the key to a good morning starts the night before, but there’s also a formula to follow. Of course, you can change it up, mix and match if you like… but this book provides a base framework to build from, which is something that can make a huge difference!

    Bottom line: it’s a highly enjoyable book to read, and also provides genuine powerful help to bring us the brighter happier mornings we deserve—the set-up to the perfect day!

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  • In Plain English…

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    It’s Q&A Time!

    This is the bit whereby each week, we respond to subscriber questions/requests/etc

    Have something you’d like to ask us, or ask us to look into? Hit reply to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom, and a Real Human™ will be glad to read it!

    Q: Love to have someone research all the additives in our medicines, (risk of birth control and breast cancer) and what goes in all of our food and beverages. So much info out there, but there are so many variations, you never know who to believe.

    That’s a great idea! There are a lot of medicines and food and beverages out there, so that’s quite a broad brief, but! We could well do a breakdown of very common additives, and demystify them, sorting them into good/bad/neutral, e.g:

    • Ascorbic acid—Good! This is Vitamin C
    • Acetic acid—Neutral! This is vinegar
    • Acetylsalicylic acid—Good or Bad! This is aspirin (a painkiller and blood-thinning agent, can be good for you or can cause more problems than it solves, depending on your personal medical situation. If in doubt, check with your doctor)
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    • Sucralose—Neutral! This is technically a sugar (as is anything ending in -ose), but the body can’t metabolize it and processes it as a dietary fiber instead. We’d list it as good for that reason, but honestly, we doubt you’re eating enough sucralose to make a noticeable difference to your daily fiber intake.
    • Sucrose—Bad! This is just plain sugar

    Sometimes words that sound the same can ring alarm bells when they need not, for example there’s a big difference between:

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    Let us know if there are particular additives (or particular medications) you’d like us to look at!

    While for legal reasons we cannot give medical advice, talking about common contraindications (e.g., it’s generally advised to not take this with that, as one will stop the other from working, etc) is definitely something we could do.

    For example! St. John’s Wort, very popular as a herbal mood-brightener, is on the list of contraindications for so many medications, including:

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    • Birth control pills
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    • Certain statins, including simvastatin

    Q: As I am a retired nurse, I am always interested in new medical technology and new ways of diagnosing. I have recently heard of using the eyes to diagnose Alzheimer’s. When I did some research I didn’t find too much. I am thinking the information may be too new or I wasn’t on the right sites.

    (this is in response to last week’s piece on lutein, eyes, and brain health)

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    Read: Cognitive Function and Its Relationship with Macular Pigment Optical Density and Serum Concentrations of its Constituent Carotenoids

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    Q: As to specific health topics, I would love to see someone address all these Instagram ads targeted to women that claim “You only need to ‘balance your hormones’ to lose weight, get ripped, etc.” What does this mean? Which hormones are they all talking about? They all seem to be selling a workout program and/or supplements or something similar, as they are ads, after all. Is there any science behind this stuff or is it mostly hot air, as I suspect?

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    That’s a great suggestion also about addressing ads (and goes for health-related things in general, not just hormonal stuff) and examining their claims, what they mean, how they work (if they work!), and what’s “technically true but may be misleading* cause confusion”

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  • 12 Foods That Fight Depression & Anxiety

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Food impacts mental health, and while it won’t magically cure mental illness, dietary changes can do a lot to improve mood. Here’s how:

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    • Walnuts are rich in omega-3s for brain health; arguably the best nut for depression relief.
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  • Make Social Media Work For Your Mental Health

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

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    Grow & nurture your community

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    Remember it’s not the boss of you

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    Don’t Forget…

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