PERIPHERAL-BLOOD PROGENITOR-CELL TRANSPLANTATION MOBILIZED BY R-METHUG-CSF (FILGRASTIM) - A LESS COSTLY ALTERNATIVE TO AUTOLOGOUS BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANTATION

In a retrospective study, we calculated the treatment costs of 63 pati ents who received either autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT) with recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (r-metHu G-CSF) (filgrastim) (n=13) or without r-metHuG-CSF (n=22) or alternati vely, peripheral blood progenitor cell (PBPC) transplantation mobilise d by r-metHuG-CSF (n=28). the recovery of granulocytes, platelets and reticulocytes after PBPC was markedly accelerated as compared with ABM T with or without r-metHuG-CSF. The accelerated haematopoietic recover y was associated with a reduction in platelets and red blood cell tran sfusion requirements, with a reduction in episodes of fever and with e arlier discharge from the hospital. This resulted in the average cost per treatment of the PBPC group being almost 30% lower than the treatm ent costs in the ABMT groups.