No Increased Mortality: Latest Findings

A very large-scale, long-term study (median duration of almost 4 years). Peter Hansen / iStock / Getty Images Plus / via Getty Images

Lhe scientific interest group (GIS) EPI-PHARE has published the conclusions of a large pharmaco-epidemiological study [[1, 2]relating to the safety of cancer/universal-cancer-vaccine-heading-to-human-trials-could-be-useful-for-all-forms-of-cancer” title=”'Universal' … vaccine heading to human trials could be useful for …”>mRNA vaccines against Covid-19 and covering a population of nearly 29 million French people aged 18 to 59 ans.

According to the results, no increase in mortality risk, all causes in the long term, is not associated to this type of vaccines. On the contrary, the authors even observe a reduction in the risk of death in the population of people who have been vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine compared to those not vaccinated.

About the EPI-PHARE study

The study was carried out in the French population, using data from the health data system (SNDS)[[2].

She compared the all-cause mortality at 4 years (median duration of 45 months more precisely) in people aged 18 to 59 vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine versus those not vaccinated, i.e. a total population of nearly 29 million people.

People included in the vaccinated population had received at least a first dose of an mRNA vaccine against Covid-19 between 1^is May and October 31, 2021, i.e. during the primary vaccination period:

• 22.7 million individuals vaccinated;
• 5.9 million individuals unvaccinated as of October 31, 2021.

The vaccines used during this period were COMIRNATY (the formulation of which has evolved since 2021) and MODERNA (which is no longer marketed today – cf. our article of January 12, 2021).

Reduced risk of long-term deaths in vaccinated population

During follow-up, 98,429 (0.4%) and 32,662 (0.6%) deaths occurred in each of the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups, respectively. Deaths from cancer were the most numerous, followed by deaths from external causes of mortality (including transport accidents, falls, drownings, as well as suicides or self-inflicted injuries) and diseases of the circulatory system.

Compared to the population unvaccinated, vaccinated individuals presented in the long term:

• a risk of death for severe Covid-19 hospitalized reduced by 74%, which once again demonstrates the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines on severe forms of Covid-19 (cf. our article of July 7, 2022),
• a risk of death from any cause reduced by 25 % : this reduction is observed for all the main causes of death, including cardiovascular diseases and cancers.

In a substudy focusing on short-term mortality (relative incidence within 6 months after vaccination), the authors note a mortality risk also reduced in vaccinated population, of around 29%. These results are consistent with available international data.

Further evidence of the safety of mRNA vaccines

This large-scale national EPI-PHARE study was published on December 4, 2025 in the revue JAMA Network Open.

For the authors, the results confirm the long-term safety profile of mRNA Covid vaccines.

These data are even more interesting that there does not exist (to the authors’ knowledge) any other study in the world analyzing the relationship between mortality long term and vaccination status, particularly in a population of young adults who are considered to be at lower risk of severe form of Covid-19 infection.