Category Archives: Health

A Complete Guide To Stem Cell Transplant

A Complete Guide To Stem Cell Transplant
A Complete Guide To Stem Cell Transplant

In the present day, hearing about stem cells in the news is a very common thing. It is also common that you would also hear a lot more about how they can help people save their lives. Stem cells are said to help in curing a lot of deadly diseases like various types of cancer.

 

We do know that we all have stem cells present in our bodies but do we exactly know what they are or what they do? We just know that they might be helpful in treating various types of diseases and injuries. Here is an article that will help you understand more about stem cells and stem cell transplant.

 

Stem Cells

 

Stem cells can be referred to as the raw materials of the body. These are cells from which various other new cells with more complex functions generate. Stem cells further divide to create more cells that are called daughter cells. Daughter cells can only be formed under the correct conditions of the body or in a laboratory. The daughter cells now further develop to become cells with complex functions or stem cells.

 

Stem cells can help in a lot of things like:

 

  • Improve the understanding of the root of the disease.
  • Test numerous new drugs for their effectiveness and safety.
  • Creates new cells that can replace cells with diseases.

 

Stem Cell Transplant

 

Stem cell transplant is a very commonly heard word, but what is it exactly? A stem cell transplant or a bone marrow transplant is a treatment in which the bone marrow of the patient is replaced with new and healthy cells. Now this replaced bone marrow can be either yours or it can also come from a donor.

 

This medical treatment is mainly used to treat diseases like different types of cancer. Types of cancer that can be treated with the help of a bone marrow transplant are lymphoma, myeloma, leukemia, and a lot more immune system diseases and blood diseases that in any way affect that patient’s stem cells.

 

Types Of Stem Cell Transplant

 

There are mainly 2 types of stem cell transplants. They are:

 

Autologous Transplant: The autologous Transplant is a type of bone marrow transplant treatment in which the stem cells generally come from the body of the patient. There are times when very high doses, radiation therapy, and also extensive chemotherapy is done on the patients. These high-level treatments can damage the stem cells of the patient’s body and can also affect the immune system. So doctors usually remove and save a set of stem cells from the patient’s body before the cancer treatment. So when the treatments are done they can replace the already removed stem cells in the body.

 

Allogenic Transplant: In the Allogenic Transplant the stem cells generally come from a different person who is known as the donor. The healthy stem cells from this donor’s body are removed and after the patient has completed the radiation therapy and chemotherapy treatments the healthy stem cells from the donor’s body are given to the patient. Now the healthy stem cells find and destroy the cancer-affected stem cells in the body of the patient.

Gift of Life Marrow Registry Also Offers Following Services :

Leukemia Bone Marrow Transplant

Blood Cancer Bone Marrow Transplant

 

Contact US:

Gift of Life Marrow Registry
Address:  800 Yamato Rd suite 101  Boca Raton, FL
Phone: (800) 962-7769

Pros And Cons Of BMT – Bone Marrow Transplant

Pros And Cons Of BMT – Bone Marrow Transplant
Pros And Cons Of BMT – Bone Marrow Transplant

Bone marrow is that part of the spongy material that resides in the insides of our bones. Bone marrow has a number of functions and it helps the body to make and store blood cells. These blood cells are required for the normal functioning of the body. The bone marrow makes white blood cells, red blood cells and also platelets amongst other things. Due to certain reasons the bone marrow is not in a position to make healthy blood cells in the right quantities. This, when continued for a period of time, impacts our immune system and could lead to diseases, infections and even death. The inability of the bone marrow match registry to make healthy cells is referred to as blood cancer. Like all cancer treatments, radiation and other forms of conventional therapies are used to kill the cells that are not properly formed. However, it may not work well in all the cases and therefore the only next best option is to go in for a bone marrow transplant procedure.

What Is Bone Marrow Transplant

This is a process whereby healthy bone marrows are transplanted and this is done to replace the damaged bone marrow cells. This works in curing certain diseases and some forms of blood cancer bone marrow transplant. However, the recovery period is long and there also is the risk of infection and other serious side effects. But for many patients, it could be the only way forward. Hence it would be interesting to know more about the pros and cons associated with bone marrow transplant so the right decision can be taken. We, need to however bear in mind that only the doctors would be in a position to decide whether bone marrow transplantation is needed and whether it will be useful or not.

Advantages

It is often considered to be the only and last option for patients whose blood cancer has reached an advanced stage. In some cases, such transplantation can help to completely cure the patients. However, in most cases, it could help in managing the fallouts of blood cancer and might help the patient to live for a longer period of time with lesser complications. However, the patients might be required to go through other forms of treatment and BMT could be used as a complementary effort.

The process is quite simple and does not take too much time. It is done through IV with the help of a catheter. The bone marrow is injected into the spinal cord area. If it is accepted by the body (the new bone marrow), it starts making healthy cells and this increases the chances of recovery for the patient or improves the prognosis quite a bit.

The Downsides

However, there are some downsides as far as this form of treatment is concerned. First and foremost, in many cases, the body rejects the transplant and if it happens it could be quite a difficult situation to manage. The patient could suffer from serious and life-threatening infections and other side effects. There also will be pain and the process of recovery will be quite slow. Even if the transplant is accepted, the recovery process will be also slow and it will be some time before the patients start to see the difference.

Contact US:

Gift of Life Marrow Registry
Address: 800 Yamato Rd suite 101
Boca Raton,
FL
Phone: (800) 962-7769