Some people experience lung problems after a transplant. They can happen if you have chronic GVHD or if you have had many infections during or after treatment. Lung problems may also be related to the conditioning treatment you received before your transplant. Low levels of platelets, making it difficult for blood to clot.
You need to take a shower every day to reduce the risk of infection. If you find it difficult to shower, let the nurse know for help. The room is cleaned and the sheets are changed every day. You are also at risk of getting an infection from some foods.
The rules on what you can eat are different in different hospitals. While you are hospitalized and if you need it, you eat less likely to cause an infection. Talk to your nurse and dietitian about how to strike a good balance between what you want to eat and what could cause an infection. Your platelet level will drop after treatment.
Platelets help blood to clot. A low platelet level means you are at risk of bleeding. You may get bruises more easily than usual. According to a recent article published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, long-term survivors of stem cell transplants have greater medical needs than the general public.
For at least the first 6 weeks after the transplant, until the new stem cells begin to produce white blood cells (graft), you can easily get serious infections. This increase is mainly due to the use of so-called reduced-intensity conditioning (IQR) regimens, and access to alternative sources of stem cells from adult donors unrelated or unrelated to human leukocyte antigens and cord blood. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (ALLO-HSCT) is an effective therapy for various malignant and non-malignant diseases. Patients who are undergoing allogeneic stem cell transplantation may want to talk to their doctor about their individual risks of developing subsequent cancers, as well as appropriate screening measures for these cancers.
Some of the complications associated with a stem cell transplant are not evident until several months or even years after treatment. According to an online publication in the journal Cancer, some patients who have undergone allogeneic stem cell transplantation have a higher risk of developing solid cancers (cancers that do not originate in the blood or lymph), especially if the donor was a woman. Stem cells collected from peripheral blood tend to engraft faster than bone marrow and may reduce the risk of infection by shortening the period of neutropenia. A questionnaire was completed with 241 patients treated with an autologous stem cell transplant and 378 with an allogeneic stem cell transplant.
The nature and severity of side effects of high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation are directly related to the type of high-dose chemotherapy treatment regimen used and are influenced by the condition and age of the patient. Prophylactic antibiotics may also decrease the incidence of shingles infection, which usually occurs after high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation. Dean Buckner Founding Member, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Explains Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation and Side Effects. After initial recovery from autologous stem cell transplant, patients are often required to take antibiotics for weeks or months to prevent infections from occurring.
Patients experience side effects caused by a low number of white blood cells (neutropenia), red blood cells (anaemia) and platelets (thrombocytopenia). Study Evaluates Long-Term Efficacy of Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation Versus Bone Marrow Transplantation. Patients diagnosed with cancer who are going to undergo a stem cell transplant should talk to their doctor about their individual reproductive health problems. .
