The positive impact of regular exercise program on stem cell mobilization prior to autologous stem cell transplantation

AimThe present study was planned to determine the effects of regular exercise program on hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) mobilization prior to autologous stem cell transplantation.MethodTwenty-two consecutive patients were enrolled in the study. A regular 20 min exercise program was administered to the patients. The hematopoietic stem cell mobilization outcome, number of Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) and aphaeresis application days were compared with 20 case-matched controls who did not receive exercise program during HSC mobilization.ResultsThe median number of CD34+ stem cells collected in the exercise and control groups were 8.15 × 106/kg (range: 2.85–33.06 × 106/kg) and 7.3 × 106/kg (range: 1.78–25.9 × 106/kg), respectively (p = 0.696). G-CSF was administered for a median of 8 days (range, 5–10) in the exercise group and 8 days (range, 5–12) in the control group (p = 0.848). The median apheresis duration was 1 day (range, 1–3) in both exercise and control groups (p = 0.226).ConclusionExercise seems to have a positive impact on stem cell mobilization though without statistical significance.