Organ Transplant Recipient Gets Third COVID-19 Shot In Manhasset

MANHASSET, NY — The Feinstein Institutes, the Manhasset-based research arm of Northwell Health, delivered the first set of Moderna's COVID-19 booster shots to organ transplant patients on Monday.

This week's event kicked off a clinical trial that is taking place nationwide at seven centers — where patients will be monitored for their immune antibody response 28 days after the third dose.

The first trial participant to receive the shot was Darla Smyth — an English teacher from Hewlett-Woodmere who has spent 28 years with a liver transplant and has had to work remotely since the pandemic began due to her high risk of infection.

Organ transplant patients are at higher risk of COVID due to immunosuppressive drugs.

"(These) recipients may not have as strong of an immune response to the COVID-19 vaccines as the general population does, leaving them vulnerable to the virus," said Dr. Lewis Teperman, director of transplant services for Northwell Health and principal investigator on the trial. "We are eager to provide patients more vaccine to help protect them, and to gain much-needed scientific evidence to help doctors best treat their patients."

For Smyth, who was diagnosed with Primary Biliary Cirrhosis in her liver, the decision to join the trial was easy.

"When you weigh the options — either get sick or get vaccinated again — my choice was clear," she said. "I am hoping this third shot will help give me some lasting protection from this virus."

The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research — part of Northwell Health, New York's largest hospital system — is home to 50 research labs, 2,500 clinical research studies, and 4,000 employees, according to its website. It prides itself on making "breakthroughs in molecular medicine, genetics, cancer, brain research, mental health, autoimmunity, and bioelectronic medicine."

Patch's Jacqueline Sweet contributed to this report.