vaccine: Quick Facts

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Last updated

Oct. 30, 2026

News •

Personalized ovarian cancer vaccines spark immunity in phase 1 trial • Oct. 28, 2026, 1:20 PM ET (Medical Xpress)

Hepatitis B Cases Could Surge Under New Vaccine Guidelines, Study Finds • Oct. 19, 2026, 5:00 PM ET (Time Magazine)

Kennedy Pledged to Advance Anti-Vaccine Group’s Agenda. Here’s What He Is Doing. • Oct. 16, 2026, 3:00 AM ET (New York Times)

‘Who, us? We’re not anti-vaccine,’ parents tell me. ‘Today just doesn’t work for us’ • Oct. 15, 2026, 7:00 AM ET (CNN)

Photos and Videos

Infographic showing estimated lives saved by childhood vaccinations worldwide from 1974 to 2024, with syringe-shaped bars for each disease. Measles tops the list at 93.71 million lives saved, followed by tetanus, whooping cough, and others, for a total of 153.84 million lives saved.

Smallpox vaccination

Three line graphs display the dramatic decline in reported cases of diphtheria, polio, and measles in the United States from 1920 to 2019, each showing a sharp drop after the introduction of their respective vaccines. Diphtheria cases fell after 1921, polio after 1955, and measles after 1963, illustrating the impact of mass vaccination programs. An inset highlights an increase in measles cases after 2010.

Human papillomavirus vaccine

A doctor in a white lab coat and gloves gives an injection to a young girl sitting on an exam table, steadying her upper arm with one hand.

A healthcare worker wearing purple gloves prepares a syringe with vaccine as Michael Nicot, wearing a mask and glasses, sits in the background waiting for a monkeypox vaccination.

A chart showing the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended immunization schedule for children from birth to 6 years, listing vaccines and timing for each dose across a timeline, with color-coded markers for standard and high-risk recommendations.

Gloved hands draw liquid from a vial into a syringe, overlaid on a digitally colored microscopic image of a virus with round particles in clusters.

How did the polio vaccine change the world?

Find out from Dr. Tina Tan of Northwestern University why adult vaccination against various types of diseases is important

Learn how vaccines enhance the human immune system to fight against harmful pathogens

Working toward a vaccine to stop nicotine addiction

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Topics

Anthrax Vaccine Adsorbed influenza vaccine diphtheria toxoid meningococcal vaccine tetanus toxoid pneumococcal vaccine pertussis vaccine Cervarix hepatitis B vaccine Jynneos variolation transfer factor toxoid antiserum inoculation antiseptic disinfectant

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Key People

Painting by Albert Edelfelt showing Louis Pasteur in his laboratory, holding a glass flask and examining it intently, surrounded by scientific equipment on a workbench.

Louis Pasteur

French chemist and microbiologist

Edward Jenner

Edward Jenner

English surgeon

Frazer, Ian; Gardasil

Ian Frazer

Scottish-born Australian immunologist

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Sir Almroth Edward Wright

British bacteriologist and immunologist

Max Theiler

Max Theiler

American microbiologist

Émile Roux

Émile Roux

French bacteriologist

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Fernand-Isidore Widal

French physician and bacteriologist

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Thomas Francis, Jr.

American microbiologist

Maurice Hilleman

Maurice Hilleman

American microbiologist

Artificial lung ventilation monitor in the intensive care unit. Nurse with medical equipment. Ventilation of the lungs with oxygen. COVID-19 and coronavirus identification. Pandemic.

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