Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation
Peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), also called peripheral stem cell support, is a method of replacing blood-forming stem cells destroyed, for example, by cancer treatment. PBSCT is now a much more common procedure than its bone marrow harvest equivalent, this is in-part due to the ease and less invasive nature of the procedure. Studies suggest, that PBSCT has a better outcomes in terms of the number of hematopoietic stem cell (CD34+ cells) yield.
Immature blood cells hematopoietic stem cells in the circulating blood that are similar to those in the bone marrow are collected by apheresis from a potential donor (PBSC collection). The product is then administered intravenously to the patient after treatment. The administered hematopoietic stem cells then migrate to the recipients bone marrow, a process known as stem cell homing, where the transplanted cells override the previous bone marrow. This allows the bone marrow to recover, proliferate and continue producing healthy blood cells.
The transplantation may be autologous (an individual's own blood cells saved earlier), allogeneic (blood cells donated by someone else with matching HLA), or syngeneic (blood cells donated by an identical twin). The procedure typically lasts for 4–6 hours, depending on the donors total blood volume.
Read more about Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation: Complications
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