Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a condition that affects some patients who have received a transplant of blood-forming — or hematopoietic — stem cells from a donor. It arises when some of the transplanted donor immune cells launch an attack on the patient’s body. The effects can be mild, moderate, or, in some cases, extremely severe. … Read more
Tom McLaughlin would have rather spent Thanksgiving week at home with his extended family, but under the circumstances the 76-year-old grandfather said he was very happy where he was — and still had much to be thankful for. On November 23, McLaughlin became the 100th patient to receive an outpatient stem cell transplant at Dana-Farber … Read more
Although stem cell transplantation is the only current therapy with the potential to cure myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), it is rarely used as an initial treatment for older patients because it hasn’t been proven superior to other therapies. New research by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute investigators stands to overturn that practice. In a clinical trial involving 384 … Read more
When Kevin Hoyle found out he was a match for a blood cancer patient in need of a stem cell transplant in 2015, he felt surprisingly uncomfortable — not from fear of the procedure, but because he didn’t feel he deserved the opportunity. “I’m just an ordinary guy,” he thought. “Why should I have the honor of being able to offer someone a possibly life-altering scenario?” … Read more
In 2018, Christine “Chris” Colpitt, 66, was feeling incredibly tired. The year didn’t start that way, but by May, Colpitt was finding it difficult to summon the strength to get out of her chair. Unsure of the root of her symptoms, her primary care physician asked her to come in for bloodwork. The results indicated … Read more
Barely a year apart in age, brothers Dave and Mike Winslow have always been close. So when Dave learned that he needed a allogeneic bone marrow transplant due to a blood cancer known as myelofibrosis, it was fitting — and fortuitous — that Mike was the perfect match to be his donor. This fall, most … Read more
When Liz Bowen first learned she would need a stem cell transplant, she had no idea she’d be making history as the first outpatient stem cell transplant patient in New England. Bowen, 55, was diagnosed with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, a rare form of skin lymphoma, in 2017. Her care team at Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center … Read more
As a fruit and vegetable farmer, Douglas Young measures his life’s work by the seasons. Since receiving a stem cell transplant for his rare blood cancer, he has been able to enjoy more harvests than he once thought possible — inspiring him to seek out the stranger responsible for saving his life. In spring 2019, … Read more
Reduced-intensity stem cell transplants, which don’t require the traditional week-long hospital stay, are offered to qualified patients at many cancer treatment centers across the country, including Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center. These outpatient transplants (also known as ambulatory transplants) are identical in virtually every respect to those performed on an inpatient basis, with the exception … Read more
For most of his life, Jim Calhoun never paid attention to college football; his football fandom started and ended with the New York Giants. This year, however, he’ll be closely following the team at Tulane University — in particular, the offensive lineman who saved his life. In 2017, Calhoun, now 45, was diagnosed with acute … Read more
There was a time when Georgette Hannoush couldn’t imagine a bright future. In a four-year span, the mother of four—including triplets—was diagnosed with two different types of cancer. But because of her team at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Hannoush has been in remission for more than three years—and she credits her faith and the people she … Read more
Alan Dynner was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 2016 at 76 years old. Treatment for the cancer would require a life-saving stem cell transplant, a procedure that most hospitals deemed too grueling for someone Dynner’s age. But thanks in large part to treatment options a short drive from his Boston home at Dana-Farber/Brigham … Read more
After undergoing the myriad challenges of a stem cell transplant and the procedure’s recovery, cancer survivor Peter Gordon is now helping others better understand the process from a patient’s point of view.
Of the many stem cell transplant advances in the past 10 to 15 years, none has had as dramatic an impact as the recent development of successful haploidentical or “half-matched” transplants, which have vastly expanded the pool of donors.
Stem cell transplants are performed in order to give a patient new blood cells, as well as a new immune system. It is this new immune system that plays a key role in making certain blood cancers go away and stay away.
Bone marrow failure occurs when the bone marrow – the soft, spongy center of the bones – fails to produce enough healthy blood cells to keep up with the body’s needs.
A stem cell transplant is an infusion of healthy stem cells. Stem cells are located within the bone marrow and are the cells from which all other blood cells and the immune system are created.
Stem cell transplantation, otherwise known as bone marrow transplantation, is the infusion of healthy stem cells into the body to stimulate new bone marrow growth. Stem cells are vital to a person’s ability to fight infection, and stem cell transplants are performed on children whose stem cells have been damaged by disease or invasive treatments … Read more
A stem cell transplant is an infusion of healthy stem cells. Stem cells are located within the bone marrow and are the cells from which all other blood cells and the immune system are created. Introducing healthy stem cells into the blood enables the production of all of the different parts of the blood that … Read more
Donor stem cell transplants and other cellular therapies are treatment approaches that harness the immune system to fight cancer using cells from the patient or from healthy donors. What are stem cell transplants? Stem cell transplants are used to treat blood-related cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma, as well as certain non-cancerous blood … Read more