Covid-era conspiracy theories have continued to circulate in Indonesia, with a recent one falsely claiming messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna cause "turbo cancer", further fueling fear in a country where vaccine hesitancy has been on the rise. The World Health Organization says data from regulatory reviews shows the vaccines are safe, while medical experts have told AFP "turbo cancer" is not a medical term.
"Turbo cancer affects recipients of the Pfizer & Moderna vaccines, and also some child vaccines that contain SV40," reads part of an Indonesian-language post shared on Facebook on September 14, 2026.
"My friend, a nurse who used to insist on getting the COVID vaccine, has, by God's decree, passed away first," it adds.
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It includes a screenshot of an X post by William Makis -- a Canadian physician repeatedly fact-checked by AFP for spreading Covid-19 vaccine misinformation -- who said that Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines cause "very aggressive cancers known as 'Turbo Cancer'".
The claim linking Covid-19 vaccines with "turbo cancer" also appeared in a Facebook video featuring Nicolas Hulscher -- an epidemiologist who has also spread Covid-19 vaccine falsehoods debunked by AFP -- where he claimed to have found "Pfizer plasmid DNA fragments" inside a "turbo heart cancer tumour".
A similar claim was also shared in another Indonesian post on Instagram, and in English on TikTok and X.
These posts circulated after Indonesian Health Minister...
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