Bone Marrow Transplant & Stem Cells

What is bone marrow?

Bone marrow is the soft, spongy tissue inside your bones that makes blood-forming cells (blood stem cells). These cells turn into blood cells including:

• White blood cells to fight infections.
• Red blood cells carry oxygen throughout the body.
• Platelets to control bleeding.

Blood-forming cells are also found in the bloodstream and the umbilical cord blood.

How does transplant work?

Before transplant, you get chemotherapy (chemo) with or without radiation to destroy the diseased blood-forming cells and marrow. In this procedure, we rectify damaged cells and give a complete bone marrow transplant in Hyderabad. Then, healthy cells are given to you (it’s not surgery). The new cells go into your bloodstream through an intravenous (IV) line, or tube. It’s just like getting blood or medicine through an IV. The cells find their way into your marrow, where they grow and start to make healthy red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

What diseases can BMT treat?

Bone marrow transplants can treat:

• Blood cancers like leukemia or lymphoma
• Bone marrow diseases like aplastic anemia
• Other immune system or genetic diseases like sickle cell disease

What are the benefits of stem cell transplants?

• Stem cell transplants can be used to treat bone marrow conditions that cannot produce healthy blood cells.
• Transplants are used to replace damaged or destroyed blood cells due to overall cancer treatment.

Stem cell transplants are available for the following conditions:

• Aplastic anemia severe (bone marrow failure).
• Leukemia is a group of blood cancers that begin in blood-forming tissues such as the bone marrow. Abnormal blood-forming cells can interfere with the production and function of normal red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. The white blood cell count may be high, normal, or low depending on the type and stage.
• Lymphoma type cancer that affects white blood cells.
• Myeloma is a form of cancer that affects cells called plasma cells.
• Certain conditions can cause specific blood, immune, and metabolic disorders. These include sickle cell anemia, thalassemia, severe combined immunodeficiency, SCID, and Hurler syndrome.

Stem-cell transplantation is recommended only for selected diseases and risk groups. The decision depends on the diagnosis, disease status, response to treatment, donor or cell-source availability, overall health, and the balance of potential benefits and risks. It is not reserved only for patients who have failed all other treatments.

What are the steps we take in stem cell transplant?

Five main stages are involved in a stem cell transplant. These are:

• To assess your general health, you may need to have tests and examinations.
• Harvesting - The process of harvesting stem cells for transplantation, whether from you or a donor.
• Conditioning - Treatment with radiotherapy and chemotherapy to prepare the body for transplant.
• Transplantation of stem cells.
• Recovery.

A stem cell transplant can be a concerted and challenging process. The transplant will take place over some time. Our specialist Dr Karuna Kumar have years of expertise in treating bone marrow transplant in Hyderabad and are skilled in performing the procedure. He is committed to treating your needs with compassion, and provide you with the highest standard of living. This type of therapy mostly takes up to a year to recover.

Frequently Asked Questions