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Bone marrow transplant to treat metastases?

Page last modified on: September 15, 2008

Question from Boop: I was diagnosed in December 2002 with breast cancer, with mets to the bone and bone marrow. Would a bone marrow transplant help at all?: Answer —Eric Winer, M.D.: Bone marrow transplants and stem cell transplants were commonly used throughout the late 80s and 90s with few exceptions. This treatment is no longer administered, because large clinical trials show that they were not better than far less toxic treatments. And, even if those treatments were still being used, anything having involvement of the bone marrow would actually be a reason not to consider such an approach because the transplant is actually from oneself. The good news is that we have new treatments today that are far less severe than bone marrow transplants, and they appear to be as or more effective.

On Wednesday, September 17, 2003, our Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Metastatic Breast Cancer. Musa Mayer, Eric P. Winer, M.D., and Marisa Weiss, M.D. answered your questions about treatment and quality of life issues related to advanced (metastatic) breast cancer.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of Breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Musa Mayer is a trained counselor with a specialty in women's issues, a patient advocate for the National Cancer Institute and has written a memoir of her own experiences with breast cancer.

Eric Winer, M.D. is director of the breast oncology center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Gillette Centers for Women's Cancers and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Marisa Weiss, M.D. is a radiation oncologist specializing in breast cancer and the founder, president, and guiding force behind Breastcancer.org.

Breastcancer.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing information and community to those touched by this disease. Learn more about our commitment to providing complete, accurate, and private breast cancer information.

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