The use of unrelated bone marrow donors
Abstract As the field of marrow transplantation has advanced, it has become clear that a patient often lacks a potential family donor. Therefore many centers are exploring the use of unrelated marrow donors. Currently, several hundred such transplants have been carried out worldwide. Although there appears to be an increased risk of acute GVHD, preliminary survival results are encouraging, and the use of such donors is certain to expand. Therefore, the need to expand the size of donor files is clear. The major limitation to transplantation then would no longer be lack of acceptable donors.