Many carry a small, round scar on their upper arm, a lasting mark from the smallpox vaccine common before the 1970s. Using the live Vaccinia virus, the vaccine induced an immune response against the deadly Variola virus that caused smallpox. As the original article notes, “After receiving the shot, blisters appear at the injection site, which eventually heal and leave a circular scar.”
Visible scars resulted from vaccine-laden needle pricks causing blisters. The injection site briefly swells, returns to normal, and after 6 to 8 weeks, a lump forms, resembling a mosquito bite, transforming into a tumor. This tumor eventually opens, oozes fluid, and becomes an ulcer, leaving a lifelong scar.
Eradicated in most of the Western world by the early 1970s, smallpox vaccinations ceased in the 1980s. The scar endures as a historical reminder of a once-threatening disease, symbolizing the successful fight against smallpox.
