Every 16 minutes, a person in Germany receives a diagnosis of leukemia. If chemotherapy or radiation is unsuccessful, a stem cell or bone marrow transplant is often the last chance for patients. For about one third of patients, a donation from the family is an option, but often an outside donor is needed, who can … Saving Leukemia Patients with a Stem Cell Donation
Definition Stem cell donation is a procedure used in leukemia (blood cancer) in which stem cells from a healthy donor are transferred to the patient to take over the production of healthy blood cells in the future. Before this can happen, the stem cells must be obtained from the donor’s body. Procedure of stem cell … Donation of stem cells
Risk for the donor Despite partially trivializing media advertising, some risks should be considered when donating stem cells. Bone marrow aspiration is a surgical procedure. Allergic reactions to the anaesthetic can occur, and there can be severe bleeding when the bone marrow is punctured in the iliac crest. Irritation or injury of nerve tracts may … Risk for the donor | Donation of stem cells
Side effects Stem cell donation has some side effects for both the donor and the recipient. During the medicinal stem cell flushing, the donor is injected with a drug called G-CSF, which is intended to flush the stem cells into the peripheral bloodstream. After drug administration, flu-like symptoms and bone pain, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting … Side effects | Donation of stem cells
Costs of stem cell transplantation The costs for a typing are about 40 EUR, which are financed by the DKMS through donations. Every potential donor can take over the typing financially by himself and make this a tax deductible donation. The complete stem cell collection including transplantation is very expensive. Thus, about 100,000 EUR must … Costs of stem cell transplantation | Donation of stem cells
Definition A stem cell transplantation is the transfer of stem cells from a donor to a recipient. Stem cells are body cells that are the origin for the development of other cells. They have the ability to differentiate into, for example, muscle, nerve and blood cells. Mature stem cells are found in more than 20 … Stem Cell Transplantation
Procedure of a stem cell transplantation Stem cell transplantation from the perspective of the recipient begins with so-called conditioning. This is a preparatory phase, which serves to destroy malignant cells in the bone marrow and is accompanied by a suppression of the body’s own immune system. Chemo- and radiotherapy as well as antibody therapies are … Procedure of a stem cell transplantation | Stem Cell Transplantation
Complications and risks of stem cell transplantation Survival rates after allogeneic or autologous stem cell transplantation have continuously increased in recent years. This is due to increasingly safe transplants and a decrease in transplant-associated mortality. However, the survival rate depends on many factors. Stage of disease and form of disease, age and constitution, as well … Complications and risks of stem cell transplantation | Stem Cell Transplantation
Procedure for HLA determination HLA can be determined in four different ways. In each case, tissue from both donor and recipient is required. The exact determination of the structure of the HLA is done with the so-called antigen determination. The process of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is used for this. In this process cells … Procedure for HLA determination | HLA – Human Leukocyte Antigen
Evaluation of the HLA values The costs of a typing are about 50€. If the typing has to be very detailed, the costs can be higher. In the last years the effort and therefore the costs could be reduced strongly by the mechanical evaluation. All articles in this series: HLA – Human Leukocyte Antigen Procedure … Evaluation of the HLA values | HLA – Human Leukocyte Antigen
Definition – What is the HLA? In medicine, the abbreviation HLA stands for Human Leukocyte Antigen. The HLA are a group of molecules consisting of a protein portion and a carbohydrate portion. Therefore they are called glycoprotein. The HLA are found on the surface of every single body cell and also on the surfaces of … HLA – Human Leukocyte Antigen
