A bone marrow transplant is a surgical procedure to replace the bone marrow that has been damaged or destroyed by disease, infection, or chemotherapy. This procedure involves the transplantation of blood stem cells, which travel to the bone marrow where they produce new blood cells and promote the growth of new marrow cells .
In this transplant surgery , the surgeon replaces the patient’s damaged stem cells with healthy cells. It helps the body make enough white blood cells, platelets, or red blood cells to survive infections, bleeding disorders, or anaemia. However, when it comes to this surgery’s success rate, there are many hospitals and oncologists in India, who perform this procedure with great success.
Let us further tell you about the bone marrow transplant success rate.
Why is a Bone Marrow Transplant Necessary?
At times bone marrow may not be healthy enough to function properly, like in case of people afflicted with chronic ailments, usually types of cancers such as leukaemia, lymphoma and even multiple myeloma. This is when a transplant is required. It is also necessary when the bone marrow simply stops creating new stem cells. Other reasons are:
- Chemotherapy that could result in damaging the bone marrow
- Recurring infections caused by an inherited disorder known as congenital neutropenia
- An abnormal form of haemoglobin is churned out by the body in thalassemia patients
Types of Bone Marrow Transplant
According to oncologists, a typical BMT takes a week. It can be autologous or allogeneic and which type is to be used depends on why a transplant is needed. The various types are –
- Autologous Transplants: Here, the person’s own stem cells are used, which means they are harvested before therapy like radiation that damages them and are placed in the body after the treatment is over.
- Syngeneic transplant: People receive stem cells from their identical twins, the closest genetic match as donors.
- Haploidentical transplantation: This is the treatment option for approximately 70 percent of people. This is done in patients who do not have HLA identical matching twins.
- Allogeneic Transplants: Contrary to autologous transplants, these heavily rely on a donor who has to be the closest genetic match, mostly sibling or parent. Not just this, these transplants require the immune system to be suppressed with medication so that the recipient’s body does not begin to attack the new cells. Lowering immunity has its own consequences: being susceptible to disease and illness. This is why the patient is segregated and kept in an isolated ward.
Furthermore, in an allogenic transplant, the stem cells are harvested from the donor, one or two days prior to the transplant.
How is a BMT done?
A BMT surgery replaces damaged or dysfunctional bone marrow with a healthy bone marrow. But a major obstacle to the traditional method comes in the presence of a donor whose stem cells are properly matched to those of the patient. But these barriers are removed to some extent with voluntary donors who are registered for organ donation at many centres. This kind of matching is very rare.
With the advancement in the medical field, new methods are being developed like ‘Haploidentical Transplantation’. In this procedure, if the tissue of a donor is able to match only half of the tissue of a patient, then the process of BMT can be completed. This bone marrow transplant works in the same way as a perfectly matched donor. However, this donor can be the patient’s parents, siblings, son, daughter or any other family member.
Why Choose India for BMT?
The Indian hospitals here are well-equipped along with expert surgeons as well as advanced facilities. To provide the patient with the treatment and care that they deserve. The surgeons also use the latest technology to conduct tests and treatment. They also consult with all their departments to find out the best treatment plan for the patient.
Many bone marrow transplants have been done, which have been successful. Along with that the success rate is high, and the team of oncologists provide post-surgery care to make sure patients go home healthy and quick.
Also, bone marrow transplant cost in India is less when compared to other western countries. Although the treatment cost is less but the quality of treatment in India is par with any western countries.
Conclusion
We hope all your questions about the success rate of bone marrow transplant are answered correctly through this article.
Our aim is only to give you information about bone marrow transplant through this article. We do not recommend any medicine or treatment advice. Only the best oncologist can give you the best bone marrow transplant advice.
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