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As research leads to improved therapies, the number of children treated with stem cell transplantation and surviving into adulthood is increasing. However, the complex transplantation process and preparative treatments often cause long-term issues that require medical follow-up. All transplant patients will require immune system reconstitution, and some patients will require special treatment for various side effects. Some late effects, like graft-versus-host disease, are directly related to the transplant itself. Others, like hormonal changes, result from chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments.
To help children manage their long-term health needs, Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Care offers multiple childhood cancer survivor programs. The Graft-versus-Host Disease Clinic provides comprehensive care for stem cell transplant patients with graft-versus-host disease, while the David B. Perini, Jr. Quality of Life Clinic at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute offers medical, psychological and educational services to childhood cancer survivors of all ages. In addition, we provide each patient and family with guidelines and support that help ease the transition to life after transplantation.
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