Bone marrow transplant - discharge

You need to take care not to get infections for up to 1 year or more after your transplant.

Practice safe eating and drinking during cancer treatment.

Be careful what you eat. Do not eat or drink anything that may be undercooked or spoiled.
Make sure your water is safe.
Know how to cook and store foods safely.
Be careful when you eat out. Do not eat raw vegetables, meat, or fish, or anything else you are not sure is safe.
Wash your hands with soap and water often:

After being outdoors
After touching body fluids, such as mucus or blood
After changing a diaper
Before handling food
After using the telephone
After doing housework
After going to the bathroom
Keep your house clean. Stay away from crowds. Ask visitors who have a cold to wear a mask, or to not visit. Do not do yard work or handle flowers and plants.

Be careful with pets and animals.

If you have a cat, keep it inside.
Have someone else change the litter box every day.
Do not play rough with cats. Scratches and bites can get infected.
Stay away from puppies, kittens, and other very young animals.
Ask your doctor what vaccines you may need and when to get them.

Self-care

Know how to care for your central venous line or PICC line.

If your doctor or nurse tells you your platelet count is low, learn how to prevent bleeding during cancer treatment.

Start to walk. Slowly increase how far you go based on how much energy you have.

You need to eat enough protein and calories to keep your weight up.

Ask your doctor about liquid food supplements. These can help you get enough calories and nutrition.

Be very careful about being in the sun. Wear a hat with a wide brim. Use sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher on any exposed skin. Do not smoke.

Follow-up

You will need close follow-up care from your transplant doctor and nurse for at least 3 months.

When to Call the Doctor

If you have any of these symptoms, call your doctor:

Diarrhea that does not go away or is bloody
Severe nausea, vomiting, or loss of appetite
Inability to eat or drink
Extreme weakness
Redness, swelling, or draining from any place where you have an IV line inserted into your body
Pain in your stomach area
Fever, chills, or sweats. These may be signs of infection.
A new skin rash or blisters
Jaundice (the white part of eyes or skin looks yellow)
A very bad headache or a headache that does not go away
A cough that is getting worse
Trouble breathing when you are at rest or when you are doing simple tasks
Burning when you urinate
Alternate Names

Transplant - bone marrow - discharge; Stem cell transplant - discharge; Hematopoietic stem cell transplant - discharge; Reduced intensity, non-myeloablative transplant - discharge; Mini transplant - discharge; Allogenic bone marrow transplant - discharge; Autologous bone marrow transplant - discharge; Umbilical cord blood transplant - discharge

References

National Cancer Institute. Chemotherapy and you: support for people who have cancer (PDQ). June Accessed May 11, 2012.

Vose JM. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In: Goldman L, Ausiello D. Goldman: Cecil Medicine. 24th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier;2011:chap 181.

Update Date: 6/5/2012

Updated by: Yi-Bin Chen, MD, Leukemia/Bone Marrow Transplant Program, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M. Health Solutions, Ebix, Inc.