The CIBMTR performs ground-breaking research into blood and marrow transplant. This research has a significant impact on the survival and quality of life of thousands of transplant and cellular therapy patients. Here we provide summaries of CIBMTR research in an easy-to-read way. Now you and your family have access to useful information that can help you talk with your doctor about treatment options.
Study summaries are organized by disease / condition and other transplant characteristics. More easy-to-read information about transplant, including diseases treatable by transplant, is available on the
Be The Match website. For help understanding this information, contact the Be The Match Patient Support Center at 1 (888) 999-6743 or
patientinfo@nmdp.org.
Diseases and Conditions
Acute Leukemia
Cancer in Children and Teens
Chronic Leukemia and Myelodysplastic Syndromes
Graft-versus-Host Disease
Lymphoma
Multiple Myeloma
Other Diseases
Other Topics related to Transplant
Access to Transplant
Donor Health and Safety
Donor Selection
HLA Matching and Biologic Factors
Late Effects and Quality of Life
Social and Financial Aspects of Transplant
Trends in Transplant
Diseases and Conditions
Acute leukemia includes
acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and
acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). AML is the most common type of acute leukemia. Nearly 15,000 new cases are found in the United States each year. AML can affect people of any age, but is most common in adults. There are about 6,000 new cases of ALL in the United States each year. It can affect people of any age, but is the most common type of leukemia in children under 15.
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Experimental medicine treats children with leukemia and MDS | Treosulfan may be safer than a similar medicine before transplant | Treosulfan, fludarabine and low-dose total body irradiation for children and young adults with acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation: A prospective phase II trial of the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium. |
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Chemotherapy prep for transplant works for acute leukemia, but risks of relapse are higher | People with acute leukemia who got only chemotherapy (chemo) to prepare them for transplant lived almost as long as people who got chemo plus radiation, but their risks for leukemia recurrence were higher. People had fewer side effects with chemo-only prep. |
Intravenous busulfan compared with total body irradiation pretransplant conditioning for adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemiaIntravenous busulfan compared with total body irradiation pretransplant conditioning for adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. |
Patients with myelodysplastic syndromes or acute myeloid leukemia may benefit from a standard preparative regimen | Patients who got a standard preparative regimen were more likely to be cancer-free a year and a half after transplant than patients who got a reduced-intensity regimen. |
Myeloablative versus reduced-intensity hematopoietic cell transplantation for acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes |
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Treatment helps children and teens with acute leukemia thrive after cord blood transplants | The TCF treatment regimen before cord blood transplant helped young people with acute leukemia live longer. | Umbilical cord blood transplantation in children with acute leukemia: Impact of conditioning on transplantation outcomes |
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Early results suggest people live equally long after half-matched transplants using either peripheral blood or bone marrow | Scientists followed people for two years after transplants for: Acute leukemias, myelodysplastic syndrome, and lymphomas. | Mobilized peripheral blood stem cells versus unstimulated bone marrow as a graft source for T-cell—replete haploidentical donor transplantation using post-transplant cyclophosphamide |
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A transplant from an unrelated donor can treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia | New research may make it possible for more people with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) to get life-saving transplants. In the past, a transplant using blood-forming cells from a sibling was the only well-tested transplant option. New research shows that a transplant from an unrelated donor can help people with ALL live equally long as a transplant from a sibling. | Comparing outcomes of matched related donor and matched unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplants in adults with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia |
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Cytogenetics predict transplant results in older patients with acute myeloid leukemia | Cytogenetic testing can predict BMT outcomes in older patients with AML.
Transplant works for about 1 of every 3 older patients with AML. |
Cytogenetic risk determines outcomes after allogeneic transplantation in older patients with acute myeloid leukemia in their second complete remission: A Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research cohort analysis |
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Less chronic GVHD after cord blood transplant for acute leukemia |
Patients had less chronic GVHD after cord blood transplants. Patients who received ATG had less acute GVHD. | GVHD after umbilical cord transplantation for acute leukemia: An analysis of risk factors and effect on outcomes |
| Blood or marrow transplant can work well to treat B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia for older patients | Reduced-intensity BMT can work well for older patients with B-cell ALL. For patients who had BMT when the disease was in the 1st complete remission, almost half (45%) were alive 3 years later. | Reduced intensity conditioned allograft yields favorable survival for older adults with B-Cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A CIBMTR analysis |
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Transplant may help older patients with acute myeloid leukemia | Reduced-intensity transplant is a good treatment option for some older patients with AML. | Phase II study of allogeneic transplantation for older patients with acute myeloid leukemia in first complete remission using a reduced-intensity conditioning regimen: Results from Cancer and Leukemia Group B 100103 (Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology)/Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trial Network 0502 |
More teens and young adults with ALL survive after blood or marrow transplant than in the past | 5-year survival increased over time in teens and young adults and in children. | Survival improvements in adolescents and young adults after myeloblative allogeneic transplantation for acute lymphoblastic leukemia |
Allo transplant helps some older patients with AML | Older patients (aged 65 years and older) with AML can get high dose chemo if they are healthy enough. About half of the older patients who get high dose chemo go into remission. However, the disease usually comes back within a year. About 40% of older patients in remission who get an allo transplant live at least 2 years. It is important for patients to talk with their doctor about an allo transplant as soon as they find out they have AML. | To transplant or not: A dilemma for treatment of elderly AML patients in the twenty-first century |
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Similar survival for leukemia patients receiving transplants from related vs. unrelated donors | Patients with leukemia who get a transplant from a well matched unrelated donor or from an unrelated donor with a single mismatch should have similar survival to patients who have a related donor. | Outcomes after matched unrelated donor versus identical sibling hematopoietic cell transplantation in adults with acute myelogenous leukemia |
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Cytogenetics classifications for leukemia patients undergoing transplantation | Cytogenetics, or the study of chromosomes, help predict the health of patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). New risk classifications could be used to predict how well patients with AML will respond to transplant. |
Classifying cytogenetics in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia in complete remission undergoing allogeneic transplantation: A Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research study |
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Unrelated umbilical cord blood transplants equal to unrelated bone marrow in helping children with acute leukemia | Children with acute leukemia who receive unrelated umbilical-cord blood transplants have outcomes equal to - or in some cases, better than - those treated with bone marrow. |
Outcomes of transplantation of unrelated donor umbilical cord blood and bone marrow in children with acute leukaemia: A comparison study |
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The types of cancers that affect children and teens are often different than the types that affect adults. Children and teens also respond to treatments differently than adults. Some cancers that affect children include leukemia, neuroblastoma, Wilms tumor, and lymphoma.
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Chronic leukemia includes
chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL),
chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and
myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). CLL is primarily an adult disease. It is very rare in children and young adults. About 15,000 people are diagnosed each year in the United States. CML is a relatively common form of leukemia. It affects more than 20,000 people in the United States. There are 6,000 new cases each year. Most cases of CML appear in adults. MDS is uncommon before age 50, and the risk increases as a person gets older. It is most commonly diagnosed in people in their 70s. About 19,000 people are diagnosed with MDS in the United States each year.
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Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a common (sometimes serious) side effect of an allogeneic transplant. GVHD happens when cells from the donor (the graft) see the patient’s cells (the host) as different and attack them. GVHD can occur along a spectrum that includes acute or chronic GVHD.
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Lymphoma includes
Hodgkin lymphoma and
non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). About 9,000 people are diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in the United States each year. It can occur in both children and adults. But it is more common among young adults and older adults. About 69,000 people are diagnosed with NHL in the United States each year. Most of these people are older than 60.
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BMT helps some older people who have lymphoma | Scientists say Medicare should pay for BMT for people older than 65 who have non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). | Outcomes of Medicare-age eligible NHL patients receiving RIC allogeneic transplantation: A CIBMTR analysis. |
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BMT helps some people with relapsed follicular lymphoma | After 5 years, more people who got an auto transplant or matched sibling donor transplant were still alive than people who didn't get BMT. |
Autologous transplantation versus allogeneic transplantation in patients with follicular lymphoma experiencing early treatment failure. |
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Transplant prep for follicular lymphoma has less risk | FCR combo before transplant may lower risk of chronic GVHD | Fludarabine and busulfan versus fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab as reduced-intensity conditioning for allogeneic transplantation in follicular lymphoma |
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Two-part transplant helps people with Hodgkin lymphoma | Splitting an autologous transplant into two doses of cells with more medicines may help people live longer than giving one transplant, a review of two studies showed. |
Tandem autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation for patients with primary progressive or recurrent Hodgkin lymphoma: A SWOG and Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials Network phase II Trial (SWOG S0410/BMT CTN 0703) |
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Allogeneic transplants help some people with follicular lymphoma | American and European doctors agree: Test for HLA type early. |
Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for relapsed follicular lymphoma: A combined analysis on behalf of the Lymphoma Working Party of the EBMT and the Lymphoma Committee of the CIBMTR |
Early results suggest people live equally long after half-matched transplants using either peripheral blood or bone marrow | Scientists followed people for two years after transplants for: Acute leukemias, myelodysplastic syndrome, and lymphomas. | Mobilized peripheral blood stem cells versus unstimulated bone marrow as a graft source for T-cell—replete haploidentical donor transplantation using post-transplant cyclophosphamide |
Better transplant results with rituximab for people with B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma | Rituximab helped patients live a little longer without the NHL getting worse. Rituximab made no difference in rates of overall survival, GVHD, and relapse | Rituximab-containing reduced-intensity conditioning improves progression-free survival following allogeneic transplantation in B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma |
Transplant from half-matched donors may be as good as matched donors for people with lymphoma | People were just as likely to be alive 3 years after transplant whether they had a matched sibling transplant or a haploidentical transplant. Fewer people got GVHD after a haploidentical transplant. | Reduced-intensity transplantation for lymphomas using haploidentical related donors versus HLA-matched sibling donors: A Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research analysis |
More older people with non-Hodgkin lymphoma get transplant | Transplant is a treatment option for healthy older people with NHL | Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation as curative therapy for patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma: Increasingly successful application to older patients |
Half-matched (haploidentical) transplant for patients with lymphoma | Patients who had a haploidentical or unrelated donor transplant had about the same 3-year survival. Patients who had a haploidentical transplant had less chronic GVHD. | Reduced-intensity transplantation for lymphomas using haploidentical related donors versus HLA-matched unrelated donors |
Patients with relapsed / refractory follicular lymphoma may benefit from a reduced-intensity allogeneic transplant | Auto transplant or reduced-intensity allo transplant can help patients with follicular lymphoma. More than 2 years after transplant, patients who get an allo transplant are more likely to survive than patients who get an auto transplant. | Reduced-intensity allografting as first transplantation approach in relapsed/refractory grades one and two follicular lymphoma provides improved outcomes in long-term survivors |
Allogeneic transplant may be a good treatment option for patients 40 years or older with non-Hodgkin lymphoma | Reduced-intensity transplant may help patients who are 40 years or older and have NHL. The chance of getting GVHD did not depend on the patient's age.
| Allotransplantation for patients age ≥40 years with non-Hodgkin lymphoma: Encouraging progression-free survival |
Patients with lymphoma have similar survival after transplant whether the unrelated donor is matched, mismatched, or cord blood | 3-year survival was about the same no matter what type of unrelated donor a patient had: matched, mismatched, or cord blood. | Alternative donors extend transplantation for patients with lymphoma who lack an HLA matched donor |
Allo transplant helps some patients with DLBCL and follicular lymphoma when chemotherapy and radiation don't | 25% of patients with either diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) or grade 3 follicular lymphoma achieved durable remission after an allo transplant when chemotherapy and radiation alone didn't work. Patients are just as likely to survive after transplant with a low dose of chemotherapy and radiation before transplant as with a high dose. Patients have fewer serious side effects from a low dose of chemotherapy and radiation. | Impact of pretransplantation conditioning regimens on outcomes of allogeneic transplantation for chemotherapy-unresponsive diffuse large B cell lymphoma and grade III follicular lymphoma |
Allo transplant helps some patients with mantle cell lymphoma when chemotherapy and radiation don't | 25% of patients with mantle cell lymphoma went into remission after an allo transplant when chemotherapy and radiation alone didn't work. Patients can do just as well after transplant with a low dose of chemotherapy and radiation as they would with a high dose. Patients have fewer serious side effects from a low dose of chemotherapy and radiation. | Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for chemotherapy-unresponsive mantle cell lymphoma: A cohort analysis from the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research |
| Outcomes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients receiving transplantations from related vs. unrelated donors | Some patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma can get transplant even if they don't have a matched sibling donor. | Alternate donor hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in non-Hodgkin lymphoma using lower intensity conditioning: A report from the CIBMTR |
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Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells. Plasma cells are a part of the immune system. More than 22,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with multiple myeloma each year. Most people who have the disease are age 65 or older.
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Transplant is also used to treat other diseases, such as multiple sclerosis and
sickle cell disease. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling disease, that attacks the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). More than 2.3 million people are affected by MS worldwide. Most are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50. Women get MS more often than men. Sickle cell disease is an inherited disease of the red blood cells. In the United States, it affects about 70,000-100,000 people. It is most common among people with African or Hispanic ancestry.
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Other Topics related to Transplant
Doctors want to make transplant available to everyone who needs it. Research helps doctors know which patients are healthy enough and would benefit from transplant. It also helps doctors know when people don’t have access to transplant and understand why.
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Doctors are committed to making stem cell donation
as safe as possible. More than 99% of donors experience a full recovery.
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Doctors always try to find the
best donor for a person who needs transplant. Research helps doctors know which type of person is best: related vs. unrelated, very well matched vs. half matched, older vs. younger. Research also helps doctors know which stem cell source is best: bone marrow vs. peripheral blood vs. cord blood.
A transplant from an unrelated donor can treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia | New research may make it possible for more people with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) to get life-saving transplants.
In the past, a transplant using blood-forming cells from a sibling was the only well-tested transplant option. New research shows that a transplant from an unrelated donor can help people with ALL live equally long as a transplant from a sibling. | Comparing outcomes of matched related donor and matched unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplants in adults with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia |
Transplant may be better when it uses bone marrow compared to peripheral blood stem cells from unrelated donors | At 5 years after transplant from an unrelated conor, people who got bone marrow had better quality of life than people who got PBSC. People who got bone marrow: - Were more likely to be back at work. - Said they felt better emotionally. - Had fewer symptoms of chronic GVHD. |
Comparison of patient-reported outcomes in 5-year survivors who received bone marrow vs peripheral blood unrelated donor transplantation: Long-term follow-up of a randomized clinical trial |
Comparing 2 types of blood and marrow transplant: Double cord blood and haplo-cord | For both types of transplant, about half of patients were alive 1 year after transplant. Patients who had a haplo-cord transplant had less GVHD, and the disease came back less often. |
Reduced intensity haplo plus single cord transplant compared to double cord transplant: Improved engraftment and graft-versus-host disease-free, relapse-free survival |
Younger unrelated donors are better for transplant patients | The best unrelated donors are aged 18-32 years old and closely HLA-matched to the patient. | The effect of donor characteristics on survival after unrelated donor transplantation for hematologic malignancy |
Half-matched (haploidentical) transplant for patients with lymphoma | Patients who had a haploidentical or unrelated donor transplant had about the same 3-year survival. Patients who had a haploidentical transplant had less chronic GVHD. | Reduced-intensity transplantation for lymphomas using haploidentical related donors versus HLA-matched unrelated
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Patients with lymphoma have similar survival after transplant whether the unrelated donor is matched, mismatched, or cord blood | 3-year survival was about the same no matter what type of unrelated donor a patient had: matched, mismatched, or cord blood. | Alternative donors extend transplantation for patients with lymphoma who lack an HLA matched donor |
Most patients who need an allo transplant can find a well matched donor | Most patients can find a well matched or a
very well matched available adult donor in the Be The Match Registry. It is important to find the best donor as soon as possible, so the transplant isn't delayed. If a
very well matched donor isn't available, it is better to use a well matched donor than to wait to try to find a
very well matched one. | HLA match likelihoods for hematopoietic stem-cell grafts in the U.S. registry |
Older sibling donors are better than younger, unrelated donors for older patients | An older sibling donor is better than a younger, unrelated donor for patients who are 50 or older. Looking at patients with a high performance score (healthier patients): Patients with older sibling donors survive longer, relapse less, and get less GVHD than patients with younger, unrelated volunteer donors. | Who is the better donor for older hematopoietic transplant recipients: An older-aged sibling or a young, matched unrelated volunteer? |
Younger sibling donors better for children and teens needing transplants | Children and teen patients who get transplants from their younger siblings get less GVHD than patients who get transplants from their older siblings. For adult patients, it makes no difference if a sibling donor is younger or older. | Birth order and transplantation outcome in HLA-identical sibling stem cell transplantations: An analysis on behalf of the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplantation |
SNPs - New information for matching patients and donors for transplant | Many complications of HLA-mismatched transplantation are the result of genes that are not currently tested in the pre-transplant evaluation process of donors and patients. Scientists use SNPs, which are very small changes in the DNA genetic code, to locate unknown genes. Some SNPs are associated with better results after transplantation than other SNPs. | Mapping MHC haplotype effects in unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplantation |
Similar survival for leukemia patients receiving transplants from related vs. unrelated donors | Patients with leukemia who get a transplant from a well matched unrelated donor or from an unrelated donor with a single mismatch should have similar survival to patients who have a related donor. | Outcomes after matched unrelated donor versus identical sibling hematopoietic cell transplantation in adults with acute myelogenous leukemia |
Outcomes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients receiving transplantations from related vs. unrelated donors | Some patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma can get transplant even if they don't have a matched sibling donor. | Alternate donor hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in non-Hodgkin lymphoma using lower intensity conditioning: A report from the CIBMTR |
Umbilical cord blood as transplantation graft source for adults with acute leukemia | Adults with acute leukemia who get an umbilical cord blood transplant do as well as adults who get a bone marrow transplant or a peripheral blood stem cell transplant. | Effect of graft source on unrelated donor haemopoietic stem-cell transplantation in adults with acute leukaemia: A retrospective analysis |
Unrelated umbilical cord blood transplants equal to unrelated bone marrow in helping children with acute leukemia | Children with acute leukemia who receive unrelated umbilical-cord blood transplants have outcomes equal to - or in some cases, better than - those treated with bone marrow. | Outcomes of transplantation of unrelated donor umbilical cord blood and bone marrow in children with acute leukaemia: A comparison study |
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HLA matching is used to match patients and donors for transplant. Usually a very close match is best. But sometimes a half-matched transplant is best. Research helps doctors know which match is best.
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A transplant can have a long-term impact on a person’s health and wellbeing. Late effects are health problems that can happen months or years after treatment. For example, treatment can affect fertility, physical and emotional health, and risk of other cancers.
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Survivorship care plans help transplant survivors | Survivorship care plans plans helped survivors of blood or marrow transplant have a better quality of life, according to a study. |
Randomized controlled trial of individualized treatment summary and survivorship care plans for hematopoietic cell transplantation survivors. |
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Tailoring care plans for life long after transplant | A survivorship care plan includes possible health issues that can happen months and years after BMT plus ways to watch for and prevent them. |
Tailoring a survivorship care plan: patient and provider preferences for recipients of hematopoietic cell transplantation. |
Caregivers and patients may have PTSD after transplant
| More caregivers than recipients reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD can be treated.
| Rates and risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder symptomatology among adult hematopoietic cell transplant recipients and their informal caregivers.
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Childhood transplants linked to slightly higher risk of heart problems and diabetes | Scientists urge checkups for cholesterol and blood pressure. | Late cardiovascular morbidity and mortality following pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation |
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Quick survey checks your quality of life | Talk with your doctor about how you are feeling physically and emotionally. | PROMIS measures can be used to assess symptoms and function in long-term hematopoietic cell transplantation survivors |
| After transplant, some people have problems focusing | Cognitive changes after BMT may include altered attention, focus, learning, memory and thinking.
Your doctor can help. | Neurocognitive dysfunction in hematopoietic cell transplant recipients: Expert review from the Late Effects and Quality of Life Working Committee of the CIBMTR and Complications and Quality of Life Working party of the EBMT |
Common late effects after transplant in very young children | 30% of very young BMT recipients have organ damage or other late effects. Common late effects are delayed growth, cataracts, and hypothyroidism. Full-body radiation increases the chance of getting these late effects. | Survival and late effects after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for hematologic malignancy at less than three years of age |
Guidelines on cancer screening for transplant recipients | Common places for new cancers after transplant are the mouth, skin, breast, and thyroid. Both allogeneic and autologous transplant recipients have a higher chance of getting a new cancer.
| Secondary solid cancer screening following hematopoietic cell transplantation |
Fertility preservation options before transplant | Tell your doctor right away if you want to talk about fertility preservation. | Clinical guide to fertility preservation in hematopoietic cell transplant recipients |
Doctors surveyed about talking to patients about fertility | Hematopoietic cell transplantation can cause patients to become infertile. However, there are options for fertility preservation, which allow patients to have children in the future. Most doctors who responded to the survey feel comfortable talking with patients about fertility preservation. Patients must tell their doctor if they want to talk about fertility preservation. | Physician perceptions and practice patterns regarding fertility preservation in hematopoietic cell transplant recipients |
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Medical guidelines for survivors of stem cell transplantation | This research article describes best practices for follow-up, prevention, and screening of late complications. | Recommended screening and preventive practices for long-term survivors after hematopoietic cell transplantation |
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Long-term survival after transplantation | Patients are more likely to survive long-term after transplant if: - They get transplant sooner. - They have better disease control and immune system support. - They get less toxic therapy. | Long-term survival and late deaths after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation |
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Spouses, partners share mental distress of cancer | Spouses of cancer patients suffer distress and depression at levels equal to - or greater than - their partners. | Late effects of cancer and hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation on spouses or partners compared with survivors and survivor-matched controls |
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Improving health for long‐term survivors of cancer and transplants | Bone marrow or stem cell transplant survivors should actively protect their health.
This can help speed up their recovery and improve the quality of their life.
It can also lower their risk of developing health problems in later years. | The preventive health behaviors of long-term survivors of cancer and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation compared with matched controls |
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Transplant affects more than a person’s physical health. It affects
emotional health,
ability to work, and
finances. Transplant also affects more than the patient. It affects the entire family.
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Transplant treatment and outcomes change over time as doctors learn more about what works best.
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