Canswerist

The following news from my e-mail file came from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society news center. While, at first, alarming, the "hidden" positive in this release is that 2-year survival following a transplant can be expected to portend 80% survival for 15 years. And while survival rates following a transplant are far less than the general, healthy population, this research begs the question: What is the survival expectation without the treatment? NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Fifteen years after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), mortality rates among survivors are significantly higher than in the general population, according to a report in the November 15th issue Blood. "Patients who survive 2 or more years disease-free after allogeneic HCT have an 80% probability of surviving for 15 years," Dr. Smita Bhatia from City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California, told Reuters Health. "However, long-term (up to 15 years from HCT), th...

One of the most critical issues for lymphoma patients deals with how and when to consider a stem cell transplant. This is most true when traditional and new-tech chemotherapy fails to provide lasting remission or a cure. The internet offers some insightful observations from a variety of resources, including this one ... ASK THE DOCTOR - Ann LaCasce, M.D. Question: My spouse is currently in the fourth round of R-CHOP for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and is showing 50 percent reduction in affected nodes. Is stem cell transplant considered plan B when only a partial response to chemo is achieved, or is R-CHOP plus a transplant preferred by some oncologists in an attempt to achieve lasting remission (cure)? Answer: There have been a number of studies looking at the impact of stem cell transplant in patients who achieved remission following initial chemotherapy. The results have been controversial, and in the era of rituximab (Rituxan), which has improved the outcome for patients with dif...