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Article: Bone marrow transplants found to cause cancer later
- Article from:
- The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, WI)
- Article date:
- March 27, 1997
CopyrightCopyright 1997 The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Bone marrow transplants for curing cancer can themselves cause
cancer many years later, a study has found.
The reason appears to be the high doses of radiation that are a
crucial part of marrow transplants.
Bone marrow transplants are widely used to treat leukemia and
other blood cancers. Typically, doctors give high doses of
chemotherapy and radiation to kill diseased bone marrow, then
replace it with marrow from a donor.
The treatment can often cure these cancers. However, doctors
were unsure how often the treatment prompted the growth of other
cancers that emerge years later.
In the latest study, Rochelle E. Curtis and colleagues from the
National Cancer Institute followed up on ...