Vaccines

Posts denounce the MMR vaccine and falsely claim that measles is not dangerous

This week, the parents of a child who died of measles discouraged vaccination, and other posts repeated false claims about COVID-19 vaccines.

Posts denounce the MMR vaccine and falsely claim that measles is not dangerous

Online conversations about measles continued over the past week after the parents of a child who died from the disease discouraged vaccination, leading to a flurry of false claims about the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. Plus, other posts exaggerated the risk of adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccines and repeated the false claim that the vaccines cause “turbo cancer.”

Insights brought to you by the reporters and science writers of Public Good News (PGN), a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to improving community health.

On March 17, Children’s Health Defense—an anti-vaccine group—shared an interview with the parents of an unvaccinated child who died of measles in Texas last month. In a video circulating on social media, the parents stated that they still oppose the MMR vaccine. They also falsely suggested that measles infections are not “as bad as [the media is] making it out to be” and promoted the unsubstantiated claim that measles infections can prevent cancer. While some social media posts expressed outrage at the parents for opposing the MMR vaccine despite their child’s death, others misleadingly claimed that the child died from pneumonia, not measles, when pneumonia was a complication from the child’s measles infection. False claims that measles is not dangerous and that the MMR vaccine is unsafe also emerged in response to posts highlighting new measles cases across several states.

On March 20, a U.S. representative shared a social media post falsely claiming that COVID-19 vaccines are “not safe for human use.” The post cited a study that identified rare side effects from COVID-19 vaccines and falsely claimed that those side effects are common. The text of the representative’s post alleged that “COVID-19 vaccines should have never received approval” and called for them to be removed from the recommended childhood vaccine schedule. Many comments agreed that COVID-19 vaccines are “toxic” and unsafe, and some shared personal stories of alleged “vaccine injuries.”

Recent social media posts in both English and Spanish repeated the false claim that the SV40 sequence “in” COVID-19 vaccines causes “turbo cancer.” One post promoting the false claim received nearly 170,000 views as of March 25, and many comments falsely linked COVID-19 vaccines to cancer. However, some comments attempted to debunk the false claim, correctly stating that the SV40 DNA sequence is used as starter material to make COVID-19 vaccines, but that SV40 virus is not in the vaccines. 

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Check out more data on trends in vaccine narratives

Recommendations brought to you by the health communication experts behind Infodemiology.com.

Each week the Infodemiology.com team will provide talking points and supporting messages in response to some of the trending narratives outlined above. Health care providers can use this messaging when discussing vaccines online, talking to patients, or engaging with communities.

Getting vaccinated against measles is much safer than getting infected, which can cause pneumonia, brain swelling, and even death.

  • The MMR vaccine has been thoroughly tested and monitored for decades. Experts are confident that it’s safe for children and adults.
  • Two doses of the MMR vaccine are 97 percent effective at preventing measles.
  • Getting the MMR vaccine also helps prevent you from spreading measles to vulnerable loved ones, including babies who are too young to get vaccinated.

Millions of people all over the world have safely received COVID-19 vaccines, with no evidence of widespread health problems or deaths.

  • Severe side effects from COVID-19 vaccines are extremely rare.
  • Some people might briefly experience mild symptoms like chills, fatigue, body aches, or pain at the injection site after getting a COVID-19 vaccine. These symptoms are temporary and mean the immune system is responding to the shot.
  • Staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines prevents severe illness, long-term complications, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.
  • If you haven’t received this season’s updated COVID-19 vaccine—which protects against more recently circulating variants—you can get one now.

There is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause cancer.

  • The SV40 DNA sequence that is used to make COVID-19 vaccines is harmless.
  • While the SV40 virus has been shown to cause cancer in rodents, the virus itself is not in any vaccine.
  • “Turbo cancer” is not a medical term—it was coined by vaccine opponents to discourage vaccination


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