Analyzing the Success Rates of Stem Cell Transplant for Leukemia Patients
What is Stem Cell Transplant
A bone marrow transplant, also known as a stem cell transplant, is a medical procedure that replaces your bone marrow with healthy cells. Replacement cells can come from either your own body or from a donor. It has the potential to treat certain types of cancer as well as other blood and immune system diseases that affect bone marrow.
What are stem cells? What is bone marrow?
Stem cell transplantation is a procedure that aids in the restoration of blood-forming stem cells in patients whose stem cells have been destroyed by extremely high doses of radiation therapy or chemotherapy, both of which are used to treat certain cancers. Blood-forming stem cells differentiate into three types of blood cells. To be healthy, you must have all three types of blood cells –
- Red blood cells are responsible for transporting oxygen throughout your body.
- White blood cells, which assist your body in fighting infection
- Platelets, which aid in blood clotting
Stem cells are unique cells that can replicate themselves and transform into the various types of cells that your body requires. There are various types of stem cells, and they can be found in various parts of the body at different times.
Cancer and cancer treatment can cause hematopoietic stem cell damage. Hematopoietic stem cells are blood-forming stem cells. Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) can self-renew and potentially lead to all blood and immune system cells. The soft, spongy tissue in the body, known as bone marrow, contains hematopoietic stem cells. It is found in the centre of the majority of bones. Hematopoietic stem cells can also be found in your blood, which circulates throughout your body.
Stem Cell Transplant Therapy for Cancer Treatment
The bone marrow transplant process includes collecting the replacement stem cells, the patient receiving treatments to prepare their body for the transplant, the actual transplant day, and then the recovery period.
A small tube is frequently placed in the patient’s chest and remains in place throughout the transplant process. It’s known as a catheter. Through a catheter, your medical team can administer chemotherapy, other medications, and blood transfusions to you. Because patients will need regular blood tests and other treatments during a transplant, a catheter greatly reduces the number of needles used in the skin.
Stem cell transplants are most commonly used to treat people with blood cell cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and myelodysplastic syndromes. They may also be used to treat neuroblastoma, Ewing sarcoma, recurrent brain tumors in children, germ cell tumors, and testicular cancer. Stem cell transplants for other types of cancer are being researched in clinical trials, which are studies involving people.
How stem cell transplants work against cancer?
Transplanting stem cells does not usually directly combat cancer. Instead, they restore your body’s ability to produce new blood cells after treatment with very high doses of chemotherapy and possibly other cancer-killing treatments such as radiation therapy.
However, in leukemia, stem cell transplantation may work directly against cancer. This is due to a phenomenon known as graft-versus-tumor or graft-versus-leukemia, which can occur following transplants that use donor stem cells. This occurs when white blood cells from your donor (the graft) attack any remaining cancer cells in your body (the tumor or leukemia cells). This effect increases the chances of success of the transplant.
Stem Cell Transplant Success Rate for Leukaemia
Stem cell transplants help you in the recovery from cancer. However, as with any medical treatment, there are some side effects. It can result in some bleeding and an infection risk. If you have had an allogeneic transplant, you may experience graft versus host disease. It can happen if your graft’s white blood cells recognise the cells in your body as foreign and attack them. This is a serious issue that can harm your liver, skin, and other organs. That is why matching your donor’s blood-forming stem cells is critical.
Stem cell transplantation can be a life-saving treatment for patients suffering from certain types of cancer, most notably blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma. However, the conditioning regimen can harm a patient’s healthy cells and tissues as well as their HSCs, leading to side effects such as infections, respiratory problems, and organ damage, which can be fatal in a small percentage of patients.
The success rate of bone marrow transplants for blood cancer patients is 50% to 75%. The survival rates after transplant for patients with acute leukemia in remission are 55% to 68% with related donors and 26% to 50% if the donor is unrelated. Stem cell transplantation has emerged as a potent treatment option in the fight against blood cancer. By harnessing the power of healthy blood cells, remarkable results and survival rates have been achieved. Treatment has been successful in 60-70 percent of cases with timely interventions. With advancements in conditioning regimens, the success rate has risen to 80%.
However, matching blood stem cell donors remains a significant barrier to obtaining life-saving transplants. Creating a robust donor database can help patients and potential donors connect. For greater success, there is a need for increased awareness and government regulations on these procedures.
Post-Stem Cell Transplant Care and Lifestyle Changes
After the transplant, you’ll need to stay in the hospital for a few weeks to allow the stem cells to settle in your bone marrow and begin producing new blood cells.
During this period, you may:
- feel tired, and you may have diarrhoea and vomiting, and/or a loss of appetite
- be given fluids by mouth or through a tube running from your nose to your stomach (a nasogastric tube) to prevent malnutrition
- have regular blood transfusions, as you’ll have a low red blood count
- have regular platelet transfusions, as you’ll have a low number of platelets
- Stay in a germ-free room, and visitors may need to wear protective clothing to avoid infections due to a low number of infection-fighting white blood cells.
Many people are able to leave the hospital between one and three months after their transplant. However, if you develop complications, such as an infection, you may need to stay in the hospital for a longer period of time. Even after you return home, you may be at risk of infection for a year or more because it takes time for your immune system to fully recover.
If you had donated stem cells transplanted, you will almost certainly need to take immunosuppressants, which prevent your immune system from overreacting. This is done to reduce the possibility of your body attacking the transplanted cells or the transplanted cells attacking other cells in your body. In the early days following your transplant, you might not feel like doing much at all. It may be difficult to eat and drink, but it is an essential part of the process. It will gradually improve.
Your body requires more nutrients during the transplant and recovery stages in order to rebuild and repair cells and tissue, as well as develop new ones. Your weight will be checked on a regular basis by your medical team. Your dietitian will help you get enough nutrients.
This stage of your recovery lasts a long time—from discharge to a year (or longer) after your transplant. It’s important to remember that even though your blood counts are returning to normal, your immune system is still in its infancy. To stay healthy and avoid infection, you’ll still need to take medications and take precautions.
Preventing Infection
Your immune system will usually take 3 to 12 months to recover from your transplant. The first year after transplant is similar to your first year as a newborn baby. You are vulnerable to infection during this time. Your transplant team will examine your blood cell count to determine how well your immune system is functioning. They may make changes or additions to the guidelines below based on your blood cell counts.
To Summarise
If you have cancer or a blood disease, a stem cell transplant can give you a new lease on life. When other treatments have failed, it can mean hope for a cure or remission. However, stem cell transplants present difficult physical challenges as well as significant risks. Unfortunately, not everyone who is a candidate but requires donor stem cells is able to find one. If you’re considering a stem cell transplant, consult with the best healthcare providers on Curebridge about the risks and benefits. They will evaluate your situation, options, and likely outcomes.