Facts about stem cell transplantation Vælg farve What is stem cell transplantation Stem cell transplantation is a treatment that can be used when a person has blood cancer, bone marrow failure or other blood disorder. A transplant with blood-forming stem cells from a healthy donor will increase the chances of curing the patient. The best result is seen when a full sibling with the same tissue type donates stem cells. In cases where there are no suitable donors in the family, there are good opportunities to find an unrelated donor from the donor register. Two ways to collect stem cells You can donate blood-forming stem cells either from your blood or from your bone marrow - this is called stem cell harvesting or bone marrow havesting. Regardless of the method, your body automatically restores the donated amount of stem cells. It is the patient's illness that determines which of the two methods is best. If it becomes relevant for you, you will receive more information about the donation from the doctors at the transplant hospital. Donation of stem cells from your blood With this method, you will receive injections in the thigh for four to six days before and during the stem cell harvest, which typically lasts two days. The injections contain stem cell growth factor, which is a substance normally found in very small amounts in the blood. You are not hospitalized during the four to six days leading up to the stem cell harvest and can therefore usually attend to your work. In some cases, you may get bone and muscle pain and fever, and you can reduce this with e.g. Paracetamol. Any side effects disappear when you stop taking the medicine. On the harvest day, you come to the transplant hospital in the morning and return home in the afternoon. During the harvest day, you will have blood drawn from a vein in one of your arms, and your blood will be passed through a machine that sort out stem cells. The rest of the blood is returned to you through a needle in your other arm. Donation of stem cells from your bone marrow With this methods, you are typically admitted the day before the bone marrow harvest. The next morning you will be under general anesthesia, after which we will take blood-forming stem cells from your hipbone. The bone marrow is taken out through a special needle that is inserted into your hip socket. It takes approx. 1-1,5 hours to take out bone marrow. The next day you can go home again. There is always a small risk in being sedated, but it is very limited for healthy people, as stem cell donors always are. You may feel nauseous for the first few hours after the anesthesia. For the first few days, you may experience pain and tenderness at the injection sites in your hip. After two or three days, most people feel normal and can go back to work. Odense University Hospital Clinical Immunology Department J. B. Winsløws Vej 4, 5000 Odense C, Denmark Phone no +45 65 41 35 78 ode.kia@rysd.dk x 1/2 Materiale nr: 182520 29.08.2024

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