Originally published September 28 2005
Study evaluates long-term quality of life for stem cell transplant recipients
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A new study suggests blood cancer patients who undergo stem cell transplants have roughly the same levels of hospitalization and diseases like asthma, high cholesterol and diabetes 10 years after the transplant as people who have never had a transplant, however transplant patients in the study had higher levels of musculoskeletal problems, poor sexual health, urinary frequency and depression.
The findings, to be published in the Sept. 20 edition of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, is the first of its kind to follow a large group of patients from before their transplant through the 10-year post-transplant period.
"In many areas of health, our survivors are undistinguishable from case-matched controls who participated in this study and had not had a transplant," said lead investigator Karen Syrjala, Ph.D., head of the Biobehavorial Sciences group in the Hutchinson Center's Clinical Research Division.
For example, the study found that transplant survivors and case-matched controls reported similar rates of hospitalization and outpatient medical visits.
They had similar rates of diseases and conditions such as asthma, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, osteoporosis and hypothyroidism, and they had similar psychological health, marital satisfaction and employment.
However, Syrjala and colleagues also found that transplant patients had a higher incidence of musculoskeletal problems, such as stiffness and cramping; poor long-term sexual health; and increased urinary frequency and leaking than the control group.
Long-term survivors also had higher use rates of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications even though reported rates of depression and anxiety were about the same as that of the control group.
The study also reported potentially under-diagnosed problems among survivors such as the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis and hypothyroidism because the reported rates of these diseases were lower than expected.
Syrjala and colleagues made an important and positive observation among 10 percent of the survivors who had suffered relapse and were in complete remission at the time of the study.
The study survey asked participants about 85 diseases and symptoms and to indicate whether they had these problems now, whether the diseases or symptoms were ever a problem in the past 10 years or were no longer a problem.
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