In the 1950s, French scientists attempted transplants as a way to help individuals whose bone marrow was destroyed due to radiation exposure. However, it wasn't until the late 1960s that science had progressed to the point where tissue matching could keep a patient from rejecting the donated bone marrow. A sibling had already passed away from the disease. Bone marrow was extracted from his sister and his body accepted it. His full immune system was restored and that boy is now a young man fully employed, living in Connecticutt and the proud father of twins.
Researchers continue to break new ground.
They are working to reduce toxicity when using marrow from unrelated donors and are also investigating new drugs that may reduce graft vs. host disease, a major complication of BMT when the transplanted immune system actually rejects the patient. Other researchers are incorporating gene therapy and immunotherapy into the transplant process. The hope is by adding new can be more effective with solid tumors, such as breast cancer. Another area of concern is the quality of life for the individuals who survive. Some of our patients have survived more than 30 years and we want to find out about problems they may be facing with fertility, potential brain damage, risk of second malignancies, etc.