The estimated proportion of persons surviving (still free of rotavirus gastroenteritis) beyond 30 weeks (# ?233@A4(30)) in the vaccine sample is approximately .99 (99%). Suppose the researchers dropped all censored observations from the data and then re- estimated the entire survival curve for the vaccine sample, including this value at 30 weeks , # ?..3@A4(30). How would this second estimate of # ?233@A4(30) compare, in value, to 0.99?

a. The second estimate would be greater than 0.99

b. The second estimate would be less than or equal to 0.99 depending on how many observations were censored prior to 30 weeks of follow-up

c. The second estimate would be exactly equal to 0.99, because everybody in the vaccine sample group developed rotavirus gastroenteritis by the end of the study.

d. The second estimate should be similar to 0.99, but there is no way to predict whether it would be larger, smaller or equal to 0.99