"Healthy Husband Diagnosed with Leukemia and Dies After Vaccination"... Bereaved Family Expresses Anguish

Photo by Cheongwadae National Petition Board Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim So-young] Amid a series of public petitions claiming leukemia diagnoses following COVID-19 vaccination, a petition detailing the story of a man in his 50s who was diagnosed with leukemia and ultimately passed away has been posted.

On the 24th, a post titled "My husband died 20 days after receiving the COVID vaccine" was published on the Blue House public petition board. The petitioner, Ms. A, expressed her frustration, saying, "My healthy husband in his 50s received the Moderna vaccine, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, and passed away."

Ms. A began by saying, "I believed the words, 'Do not doubt the safety of the vaccine at all; if there are side effects, the government will take full responsibility,'" and added, "My husband and I made reservations side by side."

Ms. A explained, "My husband's acquaintance, who was a hospital director at the time, was asked whether it was safe for him to get vaccinated despite recent fatigue, mouth ulcers, and sore throat symptoms," and continued, "Without any hesitation, he strongly recommended getting vaccinated that day, saying that if this opportunity was missed, it was uncertain when the vaccine could be administered."

She said, "Since it was a recommendation from an acquaintance and a medical professional, my husband got vaccinated without hesitation. The doctor kindly also recommended vitamin injections due to his illness and prescribed two bags of IV fluids. Additionally, he prescribed a three-day supply of antipyretics to prepare for possible high fever."

She continued, "My husband endured a fever for three days after vaccination while taking the antipyretics prescribed by the hospital. On the third day, with a high fever of 39.4°C, he visited a nearby hospital," and added, "He was suspected of having acute leukemia and was advised to go to a large hospital. He was admitted to a university hospital and fought for 16 of the 18 days in the intensive care unit, passing away without saying a word to his family."

Ms. A claimed, "During a health checkup two months earlier on May 22, my husband's white blood cell count was within the normal range (4.0-10.8 /μL) at 5.9/μL," but "After vaccination, it shockingly rose to over 125/μL, more than 20 times the normal level."

She emphasized, "Posting this petition will not bring my husband back to life. I am not seeking hospital fees or compensation," and added, "I want to clarify whether the doctor's actions in administering the vaccine and IV fluids despite his illness were justified. The government should also inform the public about vaccine side effects to protect public health."

Ms. A appealed, "The last words my husband said to me in the hospital room were, 'What went wrong...'," and said, "What the remaining family can do is, as my husband said, to find out what went wrong." As of 11 p.m. on the 24th, this petition has received support from over 3,800 people.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.