There is a temporary swelling at the injection site, but it goes down after a while. However, a mosquito bite-like lump develops into a tumor about 6 to 8 weeks after the initial infection.
Occasionally, it opens up, starts to ooze fluid, and develops into an ulcer; once it heals, a permanent scar forms.
Vaccinations stopped in the 1980s due to the decreased exposure to the Variola virus, and by the early 1970s, smallpox had been eliminated in much of the Western world.
The scar serves as a constant reminder of a terrible disease that was once prevalent.
