By Abby Woodruff – Veterans Affairs –
Earlier this year, VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS) performed the first-ever bloodless autologous stem cell transplant in the VA system.
Keith Cody, a Marine Corps Veteran, walked out of TVHS in remission and caught a flight home to California, something he thought would not be possible.
“I already feel much better. They’ve told me that I still need more time to get my energy back, but I do feel much better already,” Cody said.
As Cody’s cancer progressed while he was in California, he underwent extensive chemotherapy and suffered from its side effects. With this, he decided to ask more about bloodless transplants that could improve his quality of life.
Stem cell transplants treat blood cancers like leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and germ cell cancers. The patient’s own stem cells are collected during chemotherapy when bone marrow releases them into the peripheral blood. These cells are then concentrated and transplanted to replace the diseased bone marrow.
