Quote:
Originally Posted by sbk007
Dena, I am interested in these mini transplant such as you had.
At my consult the option wasn't mentioned, they advertised the standard medium intensity for me. After reading very encouraging stories from you and others, its something I'm going to bring up. SCT with little or no hospitalization, and lower ghvd probabilities sounds great to me. I'm the same age as you. Keep up the good work on your remarkable road to recovery.
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Thank you all for your good thoughts =).
SBK007: From what I've heard & read, Dr's usually recommend a full transplant (Myeloablative) because their data shows higher response rates.
However, for Aplastic Anemia, when the patient is above a certain age, their data tells them a mini (Non-Myeloablative) offers lower risk. (I truly do not know what the recommendations or protocols are for MDS however)
Regarding GVHD: I can't remember for certain, though because with a mini the donor cells and recipient cells "co-exist" for a while , if I recall correctly I believe GVHD risk may actually be a bit higher with a mini. However, with a mini since the recipient still has a few remaining cells at transplant, the infection risk is lower. This is why "mini" patients can typically be released from the hospital sooner.
For me, I had what they called a "mini plus", so I received about 30% more radiation than a typical mini patient. My team was concerned about my history of platelet reactions, so decided a little higher radiation would help minimize any potential reactions while receiving my donor cells.
It's all a delicate balance of weighing different treatment options & this is why having a very experienced medical team is so important.
Best,