What happens to all the vaccinations you had as child, after a BMT?

Hi @lmkmom. In a nutshell, when you have a bone marrow transplant you lose your childhood/lifetime immunizations.

Longer version: When undergoing a bone marrow transplant, you will no longer have your original immune system and will lose some or all of the immunities against contagious diseases that you acquired either through vaccinations or from having the illness and building antibodies to the disease.

However, you will be infused with stem cells (blood building cells) from a donor! This will become your new immune system which will grow and adapt with you. Initially this new system will be considered that of an infant after transplant and will need to have those pesky vaccinations that are so vital to our health.

The loss of immunity with the transplantation process can happen through the cancer itself along with any chemo or radiation used to treat it. Then before the transplant there is conditioning chemotherapy and sometimes full body radiation, both which prepare the bone marrow for transplantation of the cells. After transplant, there are immunosuppressive drugs given that may kill off many or all of the antibody-producing cells that produce immunity.

Childhood, adolescent and adult vaccinations are then given starting around the time you are taken off immunosuppressive meds. For some people it’s as early as 4 to 6 months. I was on them for 2.5 years. So it varies with each person.
During the time between transplant and vaccinations you’re vulnerable to illnesses so your transplant doctor will have you on meds which will provide a temporary immune system for you. These meds being 1 or 2 antibiotics, an antifungal and an antiviral med to keep you safe. I know, it sounds like a lot! And it is. 😁 However, it’s temporary and if all goes well, within months you’re off most if not all of the meds. After I had my vaccinations I was no longer on any medications at all. The only thing I do take now is a very low dose statin.

You’re in the early decision making days for the BMT and there’s a lot to consider. Vaccinations are just a small part of your return to a normal life afterwards. I’m here, along with many other members who have had a BMT to walk along side you as you go through this process. Do you have any other questions right now?

Hi @lmkmom Thought I’d check in with you this morning to see how you’re faring with your decision about having a bone marrow transplant. Reading through previous replies I see you’re being treated for myelofibrosis.

Are you responding well to the current medications? Did your doctor suggest a BMT as a possibility for long term cure? I know it’s a big decision to make. While it can be an arduous journey for a couple of months, the longterm goal can be a normal, healthy life ahead. I had AML and a bone marrow transplant 6 years ago. It gave me a 2nd chance at life.

I’m here for you, along with a host of other members who have had a BMT for various blood cancers. We’re happy walk you through this. Is there a timeline that your doctor is suggesting? Do you live near a transplant center?

Can you tell me what a day in your post transplant looked like. Meaning after you got home from tbe hospital

Hi @lmkmom, you asked: “Can you tell me what a day in your post transplant looked like. Meaning after you got home from the hospital.”
Do you mean literally the day after transplant? Or after I returned home from almost 4 months living near the clinic in Rochester?

Once home permanently, life resumes to some level of a “new normal”. I hate that term but that’s what it is. Normal but with new elements tossed such as, life is much slower paced, there are meds, visits weekly (at first) to a local doctor for labs which will be sent to your BMT team. You’ll be a bit weaker and tire easily. So guilt-free naps will be tossed into your day’s schedule. Walking is really important for health and well-being.
Find finding daily routine can be very helpful to good mental health. While what you’ve gone through the past few months is, of course, on your mind it is so important to branch out and fill your days with activities that change your focus from that of ‘confined patient’ to one of having a new life to embrace!

By the time you’re allowed to actually go home, generally you’re feeling more stable with growing stamina. Think of it like recovering from a serious bout with the flu;Tired, malaise, not hungry, etc. You’ll feel tired and there will be changes to your life for a while as you continue to recover. Recovery from an Allogeneic stem cell transplant (using donor cells) takes a while…and it can’t be rushed! Your body will have gone through a great ordeal and recovery goes at its own pace.
Your team will give you exit instructions such food sanitation, things to avoids such as not doing any gardening nor cleaning bathrooms, etc., for a while.
In fact, let me give you the guide I had from Mayo. While it may not be exactly the guide you’ll have it will give you an idea of what I’m talking about. It’s very comprehensive so take your time looking through all aspects from Welcome, Caregiver Support, Transplant Journey

Please scroll down to Allogeneic stem cell transplant:
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/caregivers-for-bmt-car-t-and-hematology/tab/transplant-journey/#ch-tab-navigation
Arriving home after being gone for months, I’ll admit, was very moving. As soon as we got about 20 miles close to home, I started to cry, blubbering might be a better word! Everything I held in for months came out! Scared to say goodby to my safe haven in Rochester but excited to be home with my family, friends, my ‘stuff’, my bed, to see my flower garden (though I couldn’t even pull a weed). Our friends stopped by that night. The 4 of us sat in our family room while my BFF’s husband pulled up John Denver’s, Back Home Again, on his phone. The 4 of us sang and cried along…it was a very poignant moment and brought home the reality of what happened. I survived and I now was on a new journey with a 2nd chance at life.

If you need the transplant, my advice is to not overthink it. Go ahead, take one day at a time and know that it can offer you a life of hope where you may have had no other option to go forward.

Do you have a target date for transplant?

Its on the books for Oct 8, but thats not for sure yet. To say im scared is an understatement. Thank you for the response. I will look at the link you sent. ❤️

To the BMT done and the BMT wait connections - anyone try acupuncture before or after? I’m in the wait group and tried it yesterday. Amazing energy after. Anyone else?

I think acupuncture is fabulous! I’ve benefited from acupuncture for years before being diagnosed with leukemia. It helped with chemo neuropathy after months of chemo. After the BMT, until I had my vaccinations, it was strongly suggested by my dr/team to not have acupuncture. Even though the needles are sterile, it is still a point entry for potential infection. (No pun intended. 😀)
However, massage therapy (by a licensed massage therapist) was approved before, during and throughout chemo and the BMT/recovery. In fact having massage with lymphatic drainage was, what I felt, the final release of toxins in my body. After that my blood numbers fully returned and I felt whole again.
Was this your first experience with Acupuncture?

Thank you @loribmt - only once before many years ago. The session on Friday was amazing in restoring energy, giving me more sensation in my feet and it reduced my strong heart beat - which is a symptom of my body trying to get more oxygen from the anemia. I am planning to continue weekly until the BMT. Good to know about massage as an alternative after the BMT. I know there is massage that can emulate to some degree acupuncture.

I wanted to chime in here. My husband had an allogenic stem cell transplant on Aug. 22 2024. I was reading the journal I have kept about our experiences.
We had to live within ten minutes of the hospital for four months after transplant. Some of those days were very hard with the symptoms Lori has described, fatigue, nausea, poor appetite. And some were very frightening with more intense side effects and complications. But we made it and were sent home with frequent follow-ups.
In terms of what a day is like, I can only describe each day as a blessing. We are so aware of how much we love our life together. Just being at home doing puzzles, going for a walk or reading alongside each other fills us both with gratitude.
Now nearly a year after transplant my husband is able to do some of his favorite tasks of home projects and cooking.
We don’t know what the future may bring, his blood counts and metabolic panel is still monitored weekly, but we are pulling together, and so glad to be here.