Leukemia can be treated with Stem cell treatment..
An estimated 14,985 people in North America had autologous (8,585) or allogeneic stem cell transplantation (6,400) for leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma, myleodysplastic syndrome and other blood cancers in 2003. Stem cell tranplantation procedures continue to be improved as treatment options for patients.There are two major types of stem cell transplants: autologous and allogenic. Autologous transplantation uses the patient’s own marrow. The marrow is collected while the patient is in remission, and it may be treated with chemotherapy agents or monoclonal antibodies before being given back. Such procedures cleanse the marrow of the small proportion of leukemia and lymphoma cells that might still be present.An allogenic transplant uses marrow from a donor, usually a brother or sister with the same tissue type as the patient. The basis for stem cell transplantation is that blood cells (red cells, white cells and platelets) and immune cells (lymphocytes) arise from the stem cells, which are present in marrow, peripheral blood and cord blood. Stem cells circulate in the blood in very small numbers. Drugs to increase the number of stem cells in the blood by drawing them out of the marrow are available. Sufficient quantities of stem cells for transplant are recovered by circulating large volumes of blood through a hemapheresis macnine and skimming off a portion that contain stem cells. Blood is an increasingly frequent source for stem cell transplants. Although this procedure is still referred to as ”bone marrow transplantation” (BMT) at times, the term “stem cell transplantation” (SCT) is now often used. When severe, aplastic anemia can be treated by stem cell transplantation if a compatible donor can be found. In this situation, pre-treatment of the patient with chemotherapy and or irradiation is required to suppress the immune system of the patient and enhance the likelihood of success of the transplant. Chemotherapy or radiation prior to the transplant decreases the risk that the recipient’s immune cells will reject the transplanted stem cells. In addition, since the disease is often the result of the attack by the patient’s own lymphocytes on developing blood cells (autoimmune disease), the conditioning treatment helps to rid the recipient of these disordered lymphocytes. After the transplant, the donor’s lymphocytes and blood cells will replace those of the patient, curing the disease. Acute leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma have a remission and cure rate that increases in relationship to the amount of chemotherapy given to the patient. Chemotherapy doses that were developed for the treatment of acute leukemia and considered tolerable by most individuals are insufficient to induce remissions or lead to cures in many patients.
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