Bone marrow (stem cell) transplant support thread

Hi @maryb13350 Welcome to Connect. I see you’ve been a member for several months but it’s your first time posting a comment! I hope it’s the first of many. ☺️

Your husband and I had our transplants just a few months apart in 2019. Mine was the end of June. If he’s experiencing GVHD then he had a allogenic transplant with cells from a donor, not his own cells. Unfortunately Graft vs host can be a ‘gift that keeps on giving’ as a side effect from our getting a second chance at life. It can present itself anywhere in the body but can usually be stomped out with a burst of steroids if it’s just beginning. If it’s chronic, then there are other meds that can be prescribed to mitigate the symptoms.

I’m sorry he’s still having nausea. That’s a miserable feeling. Does he still have regular followup appointments with his transplant team? Has he discussed the nausea with them or had any tests to see if there is GVHD in his stomach/digestive tract?

Thank you for your response. He does see his doctors. He is down to every 6 months with monthly blood draws. He is being treated with Zofran and anxiety meds. I had not thought about GVHD of his digestive tract. We see his doctors in early December and will be sure to bring it up.
His GVHD was skin rash.
I try to push him to eat snd exercise as much as possible.
Thanks for the reply.

I’m thinking about the Zofran your husband is taking. It was a lifesaver for me and really worked to quell my nausea in the early months of transplant. But I also started to realize that it interfered with regular intestinal movements and I couldn’t go to the bathroom as well as usual. It stopped the normal peristalsis movement in my gut which tended to cause some nausea on its own. Immediately after a bowel movement I would throw up and then I’d be fine for the rest of the day. Once I was able to get off the Zofran that feeling was gone completely. But it was sure unappreciated for a few months. I wonder if this could be happening with your husband too.

Nausea can sure mess with an appetite. I’m sorry he’s going through this yet. You mentioned he’s on anti anxiety medication as well and sometimes that can be a source of nausea. So definitely discuss his ongoing lack of appetite and nausea with his transplant team…they need to know these types of things. Is he a healthy weight?

Exercise…how about walking? That’s the single most important exercise to get his blood flowing, help keep him mentally upbeat and also, it helps the body recover and maintain a healthy environment for the new immune system.
Being a caregiver of for allogenic transplant patient is a most difficult job. You have to be a cheerleader and a psychic, along with being a nurse with the patience of Job. How are you holding up?

My husband had BMT in March 2019. The transplant went well but he still experiences nausea especially in the morning. He had a bout of GVHD and has seemed to recover from that pretty well. He is 71 and gets discouraged because he does not feel well. He has never had an appetite. Any suggestions?

I had SCT in 2016, and did experience a lot of nausea due to gut GVHD. My recommendation is to email your doctor or his nurse and ask for their recommendation. Don’t wait until December!!!

How did you address your GVHD?
I have emailed the doctor

I had acute upper and lower GI GVHD, which started three months after my transplant. I was on high dose of prednisone for five months. I hate prednisone’s side effects, but it healed my gut.