Elective Course Description
This elective introduces blood & marrow transplantation and its role in the treatment of acquired and inherited causes of bone marrow failure and immune dysfunction, including malignant disorders, aplastic anemia, hemoglobinopathy, and others. Students will be introduced to the clinical and biological basis of hematopoietic cell transplantation, including the components of applied immunology that determine whether a transplant will be successful. These include the genetic basis of donor matching, management of graft versus host disease and graft rejection, prevention of opportunistic infections, and other components of supportive care. Students will gain exposure to basic components of cellular engineering. Students will accompany the attending physician and fellows during daily rounds, attend outpatient BMT clinics one to two afternoons/week and attend weekly Adult BMT Service rounds with other members of the service. Students will observe a bone marrow transplant. Students will also audit a web-based curriculum for the BMT electives (16 lectures) developed by the National Marrow Donor Program. They will have a one hour/week meeting with a junior faculty member or senior fellow to review the material from the web-based curriculum as well as discuss issues that may have come up on rounds/in clinic.
Learning Objectives
- Understand basic concepts in stem cell transplantation, including indications, donor selection, and regimen intensity.
- Understand biological differences between autologous and allogeneic transplant and how they relate to risk of relapse and graft-versus-host disease.
- Recognize complications such as graft-versus-host disease and basic treatment principles.
- Understand risks of infection, including timeline of infectious risk and treatment principles for the most common infections.
