Preparing for Bone Marrow Transplant

You’ll spend a few weeks in the hospital under the care of our Transplant Institute following your bone marrow transplant. You’ll receive close monitoring from our team of bone marrow transplant specialists in the recovery unit.

What To Bring To the Hospital

Comfortable Clothing

• Must be washed, dried in a dryer and immediately placed in a tied or zip-locked plastic bag. This applies to new or old clothing.
• The clothing you wear to the hospital and other stray clothing will not be allowed into the transplant room.
• Shirts should be button-down or have a wide neck for easy access to your central line catheter. 
• While in transplant, your caregiver can continue to do laundry for you, following the guidelines above. 
• Bring new, loose-fitting slippers/Crocs/sandals (with traction on the bottom) to protect your feet.

Entertainment

• DVDs or VHS tapes
• Music
• Personal laptop computer and web cam (laptops are available to borrow)
• Books or magazines
• Games or puzzles
• Journal or writing paper

Personal Items

• Photos of your family and friends
• Posters or wall décor that’s easily removable
• Electric razor (for those who plan to shave)
• Hard candy such as Jolly Ranchers
• Soft toilet paper, flushable toilet wipes or soft tissues (may be softer than hospital-provided)
• Pillow (optional): must be brand new and still in its original packaging
• Personal blanket/throw (optional): must be brand new and still in its original packaging

Food

• Beverages must be in individual containers
• Snacks (such as cookies or crackers) must be in single-serving packages. No large bags of crackers, chips or cookies.
• Cooked food should be prepared according to the guidelines outlined in the "Nutrition" section of the educational guide you receive. Cooked food must be placed in individual servings and immediately frozen after preparation. Commercial frozen dinners are permitted.

What Not To Bring

Please do not bring these items with you to the hospital:

• Plants or flowers
• Toiletries such as deodorant, shaving cream, makeup or scented soaps or lotions
• Your own medications, vitamins, herbs or supplements
• Dental floss or toothbrush
• Standard razor

Bringing Food To the Hospital

Family and friends may bring in food items for you, but the nurse must check the items first. A refrigerator is available in your room. You will be given an educational guide, and anyone bringing you food or beverages should follow the guidelines in the Nutrition section of that guide.

The basic guidelines for food:

• Beverages must be in individual-serving containers. Snacks such as cookies or crackers also must be in single-serving packets. (For example, a box of cookies is not allowed.)
• Cooked foods should be prepared according to the guidelines in the Nutrition section, and then frozen in individual servings immediately after being prepared. 
• Food items in the room are for the patient only. Family and friends may not share food once it has been brought into your room. 

You may be anxious to return to your normal routine after your hematopoietic stem cell transplant, including going back to work. For a period of time after your transplant, you need to focus on regaining your strength and stamina after your long stay in the hospital.

You need to avoid crowds for a period of time after your transplant because of your body’s decreased immune function and increased risk of infection. We recommend that you wait three to six months after an autologous transplant before returning to work, and six to 12 months following an allogeneic transplant.

The timing also depends on your work environment:

• How clean it is
• How strenuous the work
• How many people you come in contact with
• Your expected work hours

Your transplant doctor will take all of these factors into consideration to determine when you can safely return to work. 

Pets can play an important role in your life and provide comfort and companionship during recovery from your bone marrow transplant. Pets are permitted in your home as long as you are not providing direct care, such as grooming or feeding, changing or cleaning litter boxes or cleaning up after your dog.

Do not allow your pet to lick your face, scratch you, or sleep on or in your bed. We recommend that you not have any birds in the home. Check with your transplant physician or nurse about when you can resume care for your pets.