title: Transfusions shortly before HLA-matched marrow transplantation for leukemia are associated with a decrease in chronic graft-versus-host disease.
abstract: The effect of random red cell transfusions given shortly before allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) was evaluated in 969 leukemic patients transplanted from an HLA-identical sibling donor. Patients were divided into two groups: 501 who received a transfusion shortly before BMT, and 468 who did not. Both groups had a similar incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), but the recently-transfused group had a significantly lower incidence of chronic GVHD (35.9% vs 48.9%). These differences remained significant in a multivariate analysis of time to chronic GVHD (p = 0.022), taking into account other differences between the two groups and known risk factors for chronic GVHD.
authors.affiliation: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Washington 98104.
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: deGast
authors.forename: P G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Beatty
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Amos
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Mickelson
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Giblett
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Appelbaum
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Storb
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Deeg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006082:Graft Enhancement, Immunologic; D006086:Graft vs Host Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006648:Histocompatibility; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007938:Leukemia / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014861:Washington / Q000453:epidemiology