Shared care after blood or marrow transplant improves quality of life
Age20-79 years old
Number of Participants302
Research GoalIncrease AccessImprove Quality of Life
After a blood or marrow transplant (BMT), most hospitals require patients to stay near the hospital for about 3 months. That's because you can get to the hospital quickly and safely if there's an emergency. This can be challenging for people who don’t live near hospitals that do BMT. Temporary housing can also be expensive or not available.
So, researchers looked at a different way to provide care after BMT. The BMT hospital partnered with local cancer doctors to let patients and families stay at home after transplant. They wanted to see if this idea, called shared care, is safe and helpful for patients.
This study included over 300 patients who got a BMT between 2017 and 2021. These patients lived more than 30 minutes from the BMT hospital. Patients were randomly assigned to one of two groups for post-transplant care:
- Standard care group: These patients had all follow-up visits at the BMT hospital.
- Shared care group: These patients had half of their follow-up visits at the BMT hospital, and half at a local cancer clinic.
The shared care plan included:
- Helping patients understand and participate in their care
- Education and training for local cancer doctors
- Online resources, including:
- A plan to coordinate care
- A communication tool for patients, local cancer doctors and the transplant team
Results
At day 100:
- The shared care group and the standard care group showed similar outcomes for:
- How many patients were still alive
- How many patients were in remission (little or no evidence of cancer)
- How many patients had graft-versus-host disease (GVHD)
- Patients with shared care reported a better quality of life than patients who got standard care.
Impact
- This study shows that shared care after BMT is safe and improves the patient experience. Patients can stay at home, lowering their stress.
- This information can help doctors make changes to improve access to care and outcomes after BMT.
Keep in mind
This may not be an option at every transplant center. Talk with your doctor about your options for care after transplant.