Pre-Transplant

Initial Consult

After carefully reviewing all of the characteristics and aspects of your cancer, your transplant physician will determine if you will benefit from high-dose chemotherapy with a peripheral blood stem cell transplant. High-dose chemotherapy can cause life-threatening side effects; therefore, you, your oncologist and your transplant physician must carefully consider the risks and benefits associated with a stem cell transplant. 

During this visit our transplant physician will discuss your cancer status, appropriateness for transplant, and risks and benefits of transplant and provide a general overview of the stem cell transplant process. Our transplant financial counselor will obtain information about your insurance coverage and will investigate your insurance company’s benefits as they relate to stem cell transplant. Knowing the financial arrangements and expected costs of the transplant can help you in the decision making process.

If you decide to pursue transplant as a treatment option, you and your Caregiver will then meet with the transplant nurse coordinator for a more thorough overview of each phase of the transplant process.

Out-Patient vs. In-Patient Transplant

Your transplant physician and nurse coordinator will discuss the option of out-patient versus in-patient transplantation with you. This decision is based on a number of variables, some of which include: 

  • The disease being treated
  • Your overall medical condition/pre-existing medical conditions
  • Availability of a dedicated Caregiver
  • Proximity of your home to the clinic
  • Insurance coverage

 This decision will be made with input from you and your family. You will receive excellent transplant care regardless of whether it is delivered on an out-patient or in-patient basis. The following is a description of each of these treatment choices: 

Out-Patient: As an out-patient, your entire pretransplant evaluation, administration of highdose chemotherapy and reinfusion of your stem cells will be done in the transplant clinic. The collection of your cells will be done at the hospital as an outpatient procedure. During the evaluation process, you can drive yourself to the clinic if you are able to. As you progress further in the transplant process, you will need a Caregiver to drive you to and from the clinic as well as help you with all of your daily activities until you are well enough to start doing things on your own. You will come to the clinic in the morning, stay for most of the day and be able to return home at night. Emergency numbers will be available to you and your Caregiver after clinic hours. 

In-Patient: Certain parts of the evaluation, work-up and collection of your stem cells will be done as an out-patient. You will be admitted to Inova Fairfax Hospital to receive your high-dose chemotherapy and reinfusion of stem cells. You will remain in the hospital for 2-3 weeks following the reinfusion of your stem cells until your blood counts begin to return to normal. After discharge from the hospital, you will return to the out-patient clinic for follow-up visits.