Anyone here (or someone you know) been through a stem cell transplant?

[Pepper]

DH has been through almost 8 months of chemo and finally got the greenlight to go to transplant. We have lots of info from our hospital, doctor, transplant nurse, social workers etc but it would be nice to hear from someone whose BTDT, especially with small kids (DS1 is 6, DS2 is 3). oh, and they'll be using DH's cells, so it's an autologous transplant - we didn't have to find a donor.

[mommy111]

no BTDT but had to respond to bump as well as to wish you good luck. The only (remote) experience I have is that of a cousin who went through it and his wife mentioned that the initial chemo with his immune system down was the real bummer, the stem cell transplant was a piece of cake in comparison. Wishing your DH a speedy and successful recovery!!

[georgiegirl]

My aunt had one, over 10 years ago at UCLA. Her youngest was probably 7ish at the time. It was pretty rough for a while (she also had brain radiation and surgery to remove a tumor in her lung (metastatic breast cancer.) before the stem cell transplant. The thing that helped her the most was getting a dog (puppy.).

My thoughts are with your family.

[3isEnough]

No experience here but wanted to send hugs and wish you the best on your DH's next steps.

[Momit]

Hoping for the best possible outcome for your DH.

[elephantmeg]

huge hugs, no advice but sending lots and lots and lots of mojo!!!!!!!!!!!!

[tribe pride]

My MIL had a stem-cell transplant (I guess like your DH, they were her own adult cells that had been previously harvested and then frozen) about 2 years ago. The transplant itself went pretty smoothly, it was the recovery that was difficult. She had to be kept isolated from germs for quite awhile, so everyone around her wore masks in the hospital, and then had to stay at home and couldn't go anywhere for several months. She couldn't be left alone in the house for a few weeks, but thankfully my FIL is retired, so he was able to be with her most of the time, and then they had family and friends take turns to give him a break. Also, MIL couldn't eat any fresh fruit or veggies, or have yogurt, or be around living plants, because of the risk of bacteria on/in them. Her restrictions eased up after a bit, and when she could resume going out on a limited basis she still wore a surgical mask whenever she was in confined, crowded places (church, restaurant, etc.)

One thing we had to be careful of was limiting her exposure to our boys after they had had vaccines (DS2 was a newborn at that point). Due to the transplant, her immune system was very weak, and she has had to get all of her childhood vaccines again. Therefore, she couldn't be around our children for 3 weeks after they had gotten a live vaccine. We had to delay the boys' immunization schedules a bit so that we would be able to see MIL for holidays, etc. Now, 2 years later, she has just about finished getting all of her vaccines again, so her immune system is almost normal.

It was definitely a challenging time, but MIL is now doing GREAT! It was absolutely the right decision for her. A key to a successful transplant and recovery is, in my estimation, having a good support network to bring y'all meals, spend time with your kids so that you can focus on DH, and to give you a break when you need it. FIL also created a caringbridge website where he did regular updates about MIL (especially in the hospital), which everyone found very helpful, and it kept him from being inundated with tons of emails and phone calls.

Hope that is helpful. Prayers and best wishes for your family during this difficult time!

[carolinamama]

I don't have personal experience with stem cell transplant, but I work with people who have had them. I work at a large teaching hospital with a cancer center and know that there are many support groups for the patients and families/caregivers. Perhaps you could find another family going through something similar through that? I am pretty sure that the social workers know of everyone and can point you in the right direction. They usually know of all the resources available through your DH's center.

The biggest medical challenges post transplant are probably going to be related to infection - making sure your DH doesn't pick up things from your family since his immune system will be compromised. I do know that I've heard the oncologists comment that autologous transplants usually do very well but I NOT an oncology nurse so I don't have much further knowledge.

Many positive thoughts for your DH and your family for a smooth recovery.