When you’re diagnosed with cancer, the treatment options may be overwhelming. Since 1984, our team of internationally renowned experts at the OSUCCC – James has pioneered stem cell transplantation, improving how blood and marrow transplant (BMT) are given and being the first in Ohio to administer chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies to people with cancer.
Our team of experts continues to expand and improve the use of these and other novel adoptive cellular therapies. We’ve established an Outpatient Bone Marrow Transplant and CAR T-Cell Therapy Program, which allows people who meet certain criteria to receive these life-saving treatments without having to be admitted to the hospital for several weeks of isolation.
The role of bone marrow transplants and CAR T-cell therapy in cancer treatment
Your provider may recommend a bone marrow transplant or CAR T-cell therapy for your specific blood cancer type.
If you’re an appropriate candidate for a blood and marrow transplant, you’ll receive chemotherapy first, to help rid your body of unhealthy cells. Then, you’ll receive an infusion of healthy stem cells that will continue to help fight the unhealthy cells in your body. Sometimes we use your own stem cells, and other times the marrow is donated by a relative or someone else.
For those who might benefit from the immunotherapy process called CAR T-cell therapy, you’ll have treatment that involves taking specific immune system cells from your body to be reengineered to better fight the cancer cells. The cells are processed in a special on-site lab and later administered to you via an infusion.
The value of outpatient care
Both a bone marrow transplant and CAR T-cell procedures can lower your immune system and put you at risk for infections and other complications. Due to this, these procedures are usually performed in a hospital setting where you’ll stay for anywhere between one and three weeks depending on the type of procedure you receive.
However, depending on your individual cancer type and situation, you may be eligible to participate in our new outpatient BMT and CAR T-cell therapy treatment program at the OSUCCC – James. Our hematology experts will work with you and your other doctors to determine if you’re a candidate for this specialty service. Program eligibility will be based on several factors, including your local proximity to the OSUCCC – James, the only place to offer these therapies on an outpatient basis in central Ohio.
If it’s safe to treat you in this outpatient setting, your chances of having to stay overnight in the hospital are drastically reduced, and you can rest in the comfort of your own home or a local lodging option while you finish and recover from your treatment. Research has shown that eligible people who receive BMT or CAR T-cell therapy care in an outpatient setting tend to have better outcomes and improved quality of life.
Building the future of blood and bone marrow transplant and cellular therapy
Marcos de Lima, MD, discusses the benefits of outpatient BMT care and the advances we’re making in cellular therapy.
Conditions treated on an outpatient basis
Blood conditions that might be treated by a blood and marrow transplant or CAR T-cell therapy on an outpatient basis include:
- Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)
- Hodgkin’s lymphoma (Hodgkin’s disease)
- Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (B- and T-cell) (NHL)
- Cutaneous lymphoma
- Multiple myeloma
About outpatient program enrollment
With eligibility for outpatient care based on a variety of factors, determining if you’re a candidate takes expertise not available elsewhere. The OSUCCC – James hematology experts will work with your doctor to decide if you and your condition would benefit from receiving BMT or CAR T-cell treatments in our outpatient setting.
How to refer
If you’ve been diagnosed with one of the cancers above and have questions about the outpatient program, or you’re a health care provider and need to refer a patient, please contact our BMT intake coordinator at 614-293-3153.
Former small-town doctor plays key role in cellular therapy explosion
Marcos de Lima, MD, leads a revolutionary approach to reprogram cells to seek and destroy blood and marrow cancers.