About-cancer/treatment/types/stem-cell-transplant

Stem Cell Transplants in Cancer Treatment

Stem cell transplants help restore blood-forming stem cells in people who have had theirs destroyed by certain cancer treatments.

Stem cell transplants are procedures that restore blood-forming stem cells in people who have had theirs destroyed by the very high doses of chemotherapy or radiation therapy that are used to treat certain cancers.

Blood-forming stem cells are important because they grow into different types of blood cells. The main types of blood cells are:

• White blood cells, which are part of your immune system and help your body fight infection

• Red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout your body

• Platelets, which help the blood clot

You need all three types of blood cells to be healthy.