It usually takes about 3 months, but it's also normal to take more or less time. The time after your transplant is a time of cell recovery and growth.
If you need to be in a hospital, you probably won't have to stay longer than 3 weeks. If the stem cells came from another person (allogeneic transplant), you may spend 4 weeks or longer in the hospital. About 1 out of 4 people need to be readmitted within the first 3 months because of problems that may occur.
Get rid of dust, mold, mildew, and other tiny particles.
Be sure to vacuum and dust all rooms, and shampoo all rugs. If you haven't done so in the past year, clean all of your drapes and blinds. Ask your care team whether it's okay to keep any house plants that you might have in your home.
Although our patients may have more than one visitor, it is the policy of the Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT)/Stem Cell Transplant Unit that only two visitors, including parents, will be allowed in the patient's room at any given time.
To prepare for a stem cell transplant, you receive chemotherapy to kill the diseased cells and malfunctioning bone marrow. Then, transplanted blood stem cells are put into your bloodstream. The transplanted stem cells find their way to your marrow, where — ideally — they begin producing new, healthy blood cells.
Day 100 is a milestone that many stem cell transplant recipients circle boldly on their calendars as the turning point in their recovery. That's when the greatest risk for critical side effects is past and when the stem cells have engrafted and begun making new blood cells.
Avoid repetitive loaded exercises such as stairs steppers, running, or weightlifting. You may walk, use an exercise bike or elliptical machine or swim/walk in the pool. These exercises have minimal compressive loading on the joints. Give the new regenerative cells time to implant themselves in the healing tissues.
Maintenance therapy is usually given after a stem cell transplant. Maintenance therapy may also be used after induction therapy in people who don't have a stem cell transplant. A maintenance therapy drug is usually given in a low dose over a long period of time.
The recovery time from this procedure is generally one to two weeks, during which time the patient may experience soreness and stiffness in the affected joint and some mild pain from the stem cell extraction site.
You are at risk of fever, infection, bleeding, anemia, damage to the organs and dietary problems. Most of these problems are worse when the blood count is very low, usually 2 to 3 weeks after the transplant.
Doctors usually say avoid going abroad for at least 6 months after a bone marrow or stem cell transplant. Most people need to have regular check ups. You might also need blood transfusions during this time. Once your blood counts have gone back to normal, you'll be able to travel.
You may feel well enough to start going back to your usual level of activity. From this point on, you'll probably feel better and better. For most people, however, the first 2 to 3 months to 1 year after transplant remain a time of recovery.
100 days after stem cell transplant is when the highest risk for critical side effects is past and when the stem cells have engrafted and instigated making new blood cells. A bone marrow, stem cell or cord blood transplant can be particularly hard-hitting with lots of prospective effects.
What stem cell source, conditioning regimen and post-transplant therapy should be used? The group of patients given a third transplant is obviously a very selected group. It was estimated to be 16 and 4.5% of all patients relapsing after a second transplant in the Japanese and EBMT studies, respectively.
Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD).
If you receive stem cells from a donor, the transplanted stem cells may attack your body. This is known as graft-versus-host disease, which can increase your risk for fungal infection.
Losing your appetite, losing weight and feeling tired are common side effects during and after a transplant. You might not feel like eating, but good nutrition will play an important part in your care and recovery.
Common short-term side effects of stem cell therapy include fatigue, headache, chills, nausea, and low-grade fever. However, side effects vary; not every patient will experience side effects. These side effects are generally mild and temporary.
A stem cell transplant is very complex. It can take 6 to 12 months or longer for your blood counts to be back to normal and your immune system to work well. Side effects of a stem cell transplant can be very serious or even life-threatening. The healthcare team will watch you closely during this time.
A bone marrow transplant does not involve major surgery; rather, it's performed similarly to a blood transfusion. In a bone marrow transplant, bone marrow cells are collected from a donor's bloodstream through a needle inserted into a bone, typically a pelvic bone.
More than 80% of people who had aplastic anemia are cured after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. More than half of all people who received allogeneic stem cell transplantations for acute leukemia in remission are cured.
Don't drink more than the recommended level of alcohol. Too much alcohol can slow the recovery of your bone marrow. Ask your doctor if alcohol will interfere with any medicines you are taking.
(09:35) The most common cancers that develop after a transplant using donor cells (allogeneic transplant) are lung, breast, colorectal, and prostate cancers and melanoma.