6. Stem Cell Transplant: A Patient's View

For the benefit of other patients, Glenn Campbell describes his Autologous Stem Cell Transplant in June 2020. This hour-long episode is intended mainly for people with blood cancers who may potentially go through this procedure. A Stem Cell Transplant (also known as a Bone Marrow Transplant) is generally reserved for patients with blood cancers who need more than traditional chemotherapy. Just before a Stem Cell Transplant, the patient is subjected to an extraordinarily high dose of chemotherapy which hopefully kills the cancer but also wipes out the patient's bone marrow, where all blood cells are made. The core "transplant" consists of a single blood transfusion which gives their own bone marrow cells back to them (or the bone marrow cells of a donor). Glenn describes the whole process from his own personal viewpoint as a patient at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston. Not only did Glenn tolerate the procedure well; he also reports "having a blast!" and "enjoying the whole process". ⸻ Originally published on 14 Jan 2020 — For related notes, corrections and links, see the YouTube version at j.mp/kc_stemcell