A study of unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in a phase 3 Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials Network (BMT CTN) trial has shown that peripheral blood stem cell donors recover more quickly than bone marrow donors. In the BMT CTN trial 0201, 262 donated PBSC and 264 donated bone marrow, and endpoints included time to recovery, side effects, and change in blood counts from baseline to after donation. PBSC donors recovered in significantly less time, with a median time to recovery of 1 week compared with 2.3 weeks for bone marrow donors. Multivariate analysis showed that PBSC donors were more likely to recover at any time after donation compared to bone marrow donors (HR 2.08; 95% CI 1.73 - 2.50; p<0.001). Blood counts were affected by graft type, with greater mean change from baseline to after donation for white blood cells, neutrophils, mononuclear cells, and platelets in PBSC donors, whereas bone marrow donors experienced a greater mean change in hemoglobin.
Burns LJ, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant