Bone Marrow Transplantation

Summary

Bone marrow is the spongy tissue inside some of your bones, such as your hip and thigh bones. It contains immature cells, called stem cells. The stem cells can develop into red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body, white blood cells, which fight infections, and platelets, which help the blood to clot.

A bone marrow transplant is a procedure that replaces a person’s faulty bone marrow stem cells. Doctors use these transplants to treat people with certain diseases, such as:

• Leukemia
• Severe blood diseases such as thalassemias, aplastic anemia, and sickle cell anemia
• Multiple myeloma
• Certain immune deficiency diseases

Before you have a transplant, you need to get high doses of chemotherapy and possibly radiation. This destroys the faulty stem cells in your bone marrow. It also suppresses your body’s immune system so that it won’t attack the new stem cells after the transplant.

In some cases, you can donate your own bone marrow stem cells in advance. The cells are saved and then used later on. Or you can get cells from a donor. The donor might be a family member or unrelated person.

Bone marrow transplantation has serious risks. Some complications can be life-threatening. But for some people, it is the best hope for a cure or a longer life.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

National Cancer Institute

Start Here

• About Transplantation — Blood Stem Cell Health Resources and Services Administration
• Blood-Forming Stem Cell Transplants National Cancer Institute
• Find a Donor National Marrow Donor Program
• Getting a Stem Cell or Bone Marrow Transplant American Cancer Society
• Treatments for Blood Disorders National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
• What Is a Bone Marrow Transplant? National Marrow Donor Program

Videos and Tutorials

• Becoming a Blood Stem Cell Donor National Cancer Institute

Patient Handouts

• Bone marrow (stem cell) donation Medical Encyclopedia
• Bone marrow transplant Medical Encyclopedia
• Bone marrow transplant – discharge Medical Encyclopedia
• Bone marrow transplant in children – discharge Medical Encyclopedia

Images

• Bone-marrow transplant – series — Normal anatomy Medical Encyclopedia

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Bone Marrow Transplantation National Institutes of Health

Find an Expert

• Directory of Transplant Centers Blood & Marrow Transplant Information Network
• National Cancer Institute National Cancer Institute

Related Issues

• Donating Stem Cells and Bone Marrow American Cancer Society
• Graft-Versus-Host-Disease Basics National Marrow Donor Program
• Planning for a Transplant — Blood Stem Cell Health Resources and Services Administration
• Stem Cell or Bone Marrow Transplant Side Effects American Cancer Society
• Stem Cell Transplant Patients and Fungal Infections Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Treatment before Transplant National Marrow Donor Program

Statistics and Research

• Donation and Transplantation Statistics Health Resources and Services Administration

Specifics

• Donation FAQs National Marrow Donor Program

Encyclopedia

• Graft-versus-host disease Medical Encyclopedia

Living With

• Life after Transplant National Marrow Donor Program

Journal Articles

• Bone Marrow Transplantation