Principles of haemopoietic stem cell transplantation

Rapid developments within the field of stem cell transplantation have occurred over the last few decades. Improvements in conditioning regimens coupled with advances in supportive and anti-infective care have correlated, in general, with improved survival compared with historical cohorts. Increasing use of alternative donor sources, such as umbilical cord blood and haploidentical stem cells, has permitted more patients without a matched sibling or well-matched unrelated donor to proceed with allogeneic transplantation as a therapeutic modality. Within this short review, the main indications for both autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplantations are highlighted. There is a focus on stem cell harvesting and graft-versus-host disease, and key areas of current research focus are highlighted.