CD34+ Hematopoietic Progenitor Cell Selection of Bone Marrow Grafts for Autologous Transplantation in Pediatric Patients

CD34+-selection of hematopoietic grafts for patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is frequently used to obtain a tumor-free graft. The majority of published experience is with peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) products; only scant information has been published on bone marrow (BM) grafts. We reviewed our experience using CD34+ selection of BM grafts in children undergoing autologous BM transplantation. After obtaining institutional approval, we performed a retrospective review of the medical records of patients who underwent autologous stem cell collection at St. Jude. From January 1, 1999, to December 31, 2003, 373 patients underwent autologous HSCT; 131 received marrow grafts, 237 received PBSC grafts, and 5 received a combination. Seventeen patients underwent BM harvests for CD34+ selection of their stem cell grafts. Sixteen patients received 19 CD34 purified grafts processed on the Isolex 300i Magnetic Cell Selection System® device. Four patients were not included in the engraftment analysis as 1 did not receive the collected product, 1 received a tandem product, and 2 received products that were composed of 2 or 3 combined purified products. Following selection, marrow grafts contained a median of 1.4 × 106 CD34+ cells/kg (range: 0.09-8.3 × 106/kg) and a median of 0.014 ×108 total nucleated cell cells/kg (range: 0.001-0.09 × 108/kg). The median CD34% recovery was 30.9% (range: 9.3%-57.1%), with the median CD34 purity being 95.5% (range: 62.2%-98.8%). All patients engrafted. The median time to absolute neutrophil count ≥500/mm3 was 19 days (range: 12-35 days), and to platelet recovery was 28 days (range 18-37 days). No patient died from transplant-related complications. Our study demonstrates that CD34+-selection of marrow grafts is feasible, and these grafts are able to successfully reconstitute hematopoiesis in patients undergoing autologous BMT.