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The Cleveland Clinic

Breast Cancer: Bone Marrow Transplantation

A bone marrow transplant may be used to treat patients with certain forms of cancer, such as leukemia, lymphoma, or breast cancer. The goal of such a transplant in women with breast cancer is to allow them to undergo high-dose chemotherapy -- which aggressively attacks the cancer cells, but also damages normal blood cells - and then replace the damaged cells with healthy ones.

What Is Bone Marrow?

Bone marrow is the spongy tissue found inside bone. The bone marrow in the breastbone, skull, hips, ribs, and spine contains stem cells that produce the body's blood cells. The three kinds of blood cells that the body needs to function -- oxygen-carrying red blood cells, infection-fighting white blood cells, and clot-forming platelets -- are all made in the bone marrow.

Who Is A Candidate For A Bone Marrow Transplant?

The decision to prescribe a bone marrow transplant is always made on an individual basis. Your doctor will consider your age, general physical condition, diagnosis, and stage of disease. Your doctor will also make sure you understand the potential benefits and risks of the transplant procedure.




Next: Where does the transplanted bone marrow come from? »

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Bone Marrow Transplantation for Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Questions to Ask the Doctor »

I may have breast cancer, what questions should I ask my doctor?

If you have received a positive or possible diagnosis of breast cancer, there are a number of questions that you can ask your doctor. The answers you receive to these questions should give you a better understanding of your specific diagnosis and the corresponding treatment. It is usually helpful to write your questions down before you meet with your health-care provider. This gives you the opportunity to ask all your questions in an organized fashion.

Each question is followed by a brief explanation as to why that particular question is important. We will not attempt to answer these questions in detail here because each individual case is just that, individual. This outline is designed to provide a framework to help you and your family make certain that most of the important questions in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment have been addressed. As cancer treatments are cons...

Read the Breast Cancer Questions to Ask the Doctor article »




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