Personnel

The Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Hackensack University Medical Center, established in 1990, is a national leader in the field of allogeneic and autologous stem cell transplantation. It is one of the largest programs in the New York metropolitan region and the only pediatric transplant program in New Jersey. In 1997, HUMC’s Blood and Marrow Transplant Program received certification by the Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT).

Both transplant physicians have been exclusively involved in the clinical and laboratory aspects of pediatric stem cell transplantation for over 15 years and are recognized authorities in the field. 

The program enjoys full membership in the Children’s Oncology Group. In addition, the program participates in selected national trials coordinated by the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium.

Participating Member of:

Children’s Oncology Group
Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium 
National Marrow Donor Program
American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation
International Society for Cellular Therapy 

Transplantation Types Offered

Autologous

Marrow-derived stem cells
Peripheral blood stem cells

Allogeneic

HLA-identical or single antigen-mismatched related donors
Histocompatible unrelated donors
          Volunteer marrow donors (NMDP)
          Umbilical cord blood

Current Transplantation Protocols

A. Allogeneic

1.Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from histocompatible (fully matched or single antigen-mismatched) related donors for patients with hematologic malignancies

Eligibility:
acute lymphoblastic leukemia in second or subsequent remission
acute lymphoblastic leukemia (high-risk) in first remission
acute myelogenous leukemia in first or subsequent remission
chronic myelogenous leukemia in chronic phase
juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JCML)
myelodysplastic syndrome

2.Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from histocompatible donors for patients with congenital hematologic and/or immune disorders

Eligibility:
thalassemia major
Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome
Fanconi anemia
Severe combined immunodeficiency
Severe T-cell immunodeficiency
Inborn errors of metabolism

3.Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from histocompatible related donors for patients with severe aplastic anemia

4.Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from histocompatible related donors for selected patients with sickle cell anemia

Eligibility:
Hgb SS-related dysfunction
          neurological
          pulmonary
          renal
          Repeated painful crises

5. Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from histocompatible related donors for patients with thalassemia (Cooley’s anemia)

6. Marrow transplantation from histocompatible unrelated volunteer donors for patients with hematologic malignancies, severe aplastic anemia or congenital lethal disorders of the lymphohematopoietic system

7. Unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation for patients with hematologic malignancies, severe aplastic anemia or congenital lethal disorders of the lymphohematopoietic system

8. Stem cell transplantation (related or unrelated donor) for patients with Fanconi anemia.

 Autologous

The majority of pediatric patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell support receive stem cells collected from the blood stream through an outpatient procedure, called leukapheresis. When reinfused into the patient, stem cells collected in this manner generally lead to much more rapid normalization of the blood counts than when marrow-derived stem cells are utilized. Consequently, the period of hospitalization for peripheral blood stem cell recipients is significantly shorter and, in some cases, an "outpatient transplant" may be offered. This involves hospitalization for only the days on which the preparative chemotherapy is administered, then discharge to an off-site facility and daily monitoring in the outpatient department until the blood counts have returned towards normal (approximately 10-14 days.).

1. Autologous peripheral blood (or marrow) stem cell transplantation for pediatric patients with high-risk malignant solid tumors

Eligibility:
Advanced stage neuroblastoma
rhabdomyosarcoma and other soft tissue sarcomas
Ewing sarcoma
germ cell tumor

2. Autologous peripheral blood (or marrow) stem cell transplantation for pediatric patients with recurrent Wilms’ tumor

3. Autologous peripheral blood (or marrow) stem cell transplantation for selected pediatric patients with malignant brain tumors