Age for successful BMT

Hi Friends.

Sorry that i was not able to log in to our website for some days.
I learnt from Madhvi,our Thalpal friend that Mohanish is doing fine after Bone Marrow Transplantation.


Andy ,I have this question that drills my brain.What is the maximum age limit to do a Bone Marrow Transplantation that can be successful.
Here Doctors say,earliest the best.Till what age Bone MarrowTransplantation option is open.Kindly throw some light on this.

Hi samyuktha,

Usually the best success rates ranges in between age of 3-7 or max out at 8 years, but I've seen people doing it at 10 or 11 as well.

About my case, when I was small, I guess 2 and half or 3 years old, I was taken to Chennai (your place  ) for matching the data with my elder brother but unfortunately they didn't matched. Also my mom or dad's records didn't matched with me, this was just for testing purpose though. If mine matched with my brother, I would have got it done at that age only.

Whats your son/daughter's age?

-Pratik.

I will quote from our partners at http://www.curethalassemia.org/faq/

How old a thalassemia major patient can be to be successfully cured with a BMT?
Thalassemic patients with a HLA identical donor has be transplanted as soon as possible,but the results in adult patients( age >17 years old) are not so brilliant.
Adult thalassemia patients are higher risk patients for transplant-related toxicity due to an advanced phase of disease and have a cure rate of 62% with current treatment protocol.
BMT is not the best therapeutic option for adult patients.

Thanks Pratik and Thanks Andy for your replies.

My daughter is 5 and half years old.She is the one diagonised with Thal Major.
One more question,
If my Son turns out to be a Thal Minor,Can his cord blood be used for BMT of my daughter?

I have nt yet checked their HLA to be frank and dont know if my Son is a carrier or not.

He is healthy as of now.He is the elder one aged 8 years.

Planning to get their HLA checked.But Dont know what next???
BMT is something  which scares us but Doctors here almost scold us for not planning for BMT as they say that Samyuktha may suffer as she grows with her health issue.
They scared me even more that if BMT is not done her life expectancy will be around 30.This statement has totally shaken me off.Is this true ANDY?
I sincerely dont know what to do.

PLease Guide me ANDY...

Yes,

You could use chord of your son even if he is Thal minor, that doesn't matter. That just means that after the operation, your daughter/son would acquire and be thal minor, instead of thal major.

And for thal majors, being thal minor is also very dreamy and feels good. My brother and my parents (obviously) are thal minors but all of them are very active and doesn't feel laziness.

Pratik is correct and I know a woman who received a BMT from her sister many years ago and is now thal minor.

If you are possibly considering BMT, please go to http://www.curethalassemia.org/faq/ and read through so you have a better understanding of where we are today regarding BMT. You can also ask questions directly of Dr Sodani by sending a message through this page, http://www.curethalassemia.org/free-advice-on-bmt/
There is even a new page where you can connect to people who have experience with BMT. http://www.curethalassemia.org/bone-marrow-transplantation-bmt/testimonials/

And late in June, Dr Sodani will be meeting people in Bangalore. There will be no charge for this meeting, and for anyone who can make it, it will be quite worthwhile. It is seldom that such a noted doctor is willing to offer advice for free, so I hope people take advantage of this rare opportunity. http://www.curethalassemia.org/services/meet-dr-sodani-in-person/

Cure thalassemia welcomes all, even if a BMT is going to be done elsewhere.

Hi Samyuktha,

I know that doing a BMT is not an easy decision, and this is why Cure Thalassemia has created its website and gives free advice, both remotely and face to face.

I confirm you that the sooner the better, if possibile no more than 5-8 years old, becuase after that age the results are less positive, since the patient is nor more class 1 and becomes class 2

A thal carrier can be an excellent donor.

You have written "his cord blood be used for BMT of my daughter?"
Please notice that Dr. Sodani and Prof. Lucarelli (the most experienced doctors in the world about BMT for thalassemia, both involved in Cure Thalassemia) always prefer to use the bone marrow of the donor and not the cord blood, because there are better results and the risk is lower. The only expeption is if they don't have access to the donor, but there is the cord blood of him.

As Andy said, I suggest to have the free advice on BMT of Dr. Sodani:
http://www.curethalassemia.org/free-advice-on-bmt/
and you can also meet him in person in Bangalore for free:
http://www.curethalassemia.org/services/meet-dr-sodani-in-person/

If you have any other question, please ask.