Is Bone marrow transplant safe? How long does it take to recover from the surgery?

 

What is a Bone marrow transplant?

A bone marrow transplant is a procedure needed to replace damaged and destroyed bone marrow with new healthy bone marrow or stem cells. A bone marrow transplant is used to cure many diseases and different types of cancers or certain blood-related conditions. This type of transplant can be an intensive procedure, and recovery can take a long time.

Bone marrow is the soft, fatty tissue inside the bone, and stem cells are immature cells inside this marrow that produce the body’s blood cells.

 

The procedure

A bone marrow transplant does not involve major surgery; rather, it’s performed similarly to a blood transfusion. During the procedure, bone marrow cells are collected from a donor’s bloodstream through a needle inserted into a bone, typically a pelvic bone.

There are two types of donor situations:

• Autologous, using the recipient’s own cells


• Allogeneic, using donor cells

The cells are transferred by an infusion (or reinfused, if autologous) into the patient’s bloodstream. In both the cases, the infused cells are hematopoietic stem cells, which, once transfused into the patient, help the body produce new blood and immune cells.

A bone marrow transplant might be necessary for patients who have received high doses of chemotherapy (and sometimes radiation), which can suppress the body’s ability to make blood.

 

Complications from the procedure

A bone marrow transplant is a major medical procedure. There is a high risk of complications during and after it.

The likelihood of developing complications depends on various factors, including:

• the person’s age


• their overall health


• the type of transplant


• the reason for their transplant

Below are some of the more common complications that people who receive bone marrow transplants experience:

• infections


• nausea and vomiting


• diarrhea


• Inflammation and soreness in the throat, mouth, and stomach


• Graft failure, in which the transplanted cells do not produce new blood cells


• Anemia


• Infertility


• Cataracts


• Organ damage


• Graft-versus-host disease, in which the donor cells attack the person’s body


• Bleeding in the brain, lungs, or other organs

 

Recovery

The doctor will continue to check the blood each day to determine how well the transplant has worked after the surgery. They will test whether new cells are beginning to grow in bone marrow. If a person’s white blood cell count starts to rise, it indicates that the body is starting to create its own blood, indicating that the transplant has been successful.

The amount of time that it takes for the body to recover depends on:

• How well the immune system recovers


• How well the body accepts the new, healthy cells

Many other factors can affect recovery, including:

• Underlying medical conditions


• The use of chemotherapy, radiation, or both


• Where the transplant was performed


• The closeness of the donor match

Some people are able to leave the hospital soon after the transplant, while others need to stay for several weeks or months.

The medical team will continue to monitor the person’s recovery for up to 1 year. Some people find that effects of the transplant remain for life.