Discussing half-matched BMTs and sickle cell disease
In the 2009 video below, Dr. Robert Brodsky, Professor of Medicine and Chief of Hematology at Johns Hopkins Medicine, discusses the procedure known as the half-matched transplant and its use in treating sickle cell disease.
Earlier this year, Dr. Brodsky was a member of a research team who reported encouraging results from a small preliminary study of sickle cell patients, some of whom received half-matched transplants. According to Brodsky, “while bone marrow transplants have long been known to cure sickle cell disease, only a small percentage of patients have fully matched, eligible donors.” The John Hopkins researchers hope that this procedure “could potentially help make bone marrow transplants accessible to a majority of sickle cell patients who need them.”
To read more about the half-match transplant study:
Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation 