Bone Marrow Transplant

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What Are Bone Marrow Transplants?

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Bone marrow transplant surgery is recommended for patients who suffer from various ailments such as blood diseases, metabolic diseases, immune deficiencies, and certain forms of cancer. In these patients, the bone marrow (the soft, fatty tissue in the bones) has stopped functioning effectively and needs to be replaced with healthy bone marrow to generate healthy, new blood cells. Patients undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia, for example, often need bone marrow transplants to replace the blood cells that are destroyed by the chemotherapy treatment.

Patients in need of bone marrow transplant surgery are treated in special BMT (bone marrow transplant) units to protect them from exposure to infectious elements. The new bone marrow can be taken from the patient prior to chemotherapy (called an autograft) or from a donor (called an allograft), who could be a living relative or a donor registered with the national marrow donor program.

A blood test, known as HLA tissue typing, is performed on samples of the donor’s blood to determine whether or not his or her bone marrow is a suitable match for the patient. Prior to bone marrow transplants, patients may undergo a high dose of chemotherapy or radiation treatment to eliminate any cancerous cells in the body. This high level exposure also helps to prevent the body’s immune system from rejecting the new bone marrow.

Once an appropriate donor is found, general anesthesia is administered, and bone marrow is taken from the top of their hipbone, filtered, treated, and transplanted into the patient through an IV. In some cases, the new bone marrow is frozen and stored for transplantation at a later time. The bone marrow takes approximately 10 to 20 days to fully adjust to the patient’s body. In the interim, the patient will require blood cell transfusions. The risk of infection during the healing period is also quite high due to the body’s limited immune system. Patients are typically hospitalized for four to six weeks and follow-up care can extend to two to three months post discharge. Full recovery of the immune system is usually expected after six to twelve months.

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