A bone marrow transplant is a medical procedure performed to replace bone marrow that has been damaged or destroyed by disease, infection, or chemotherapy. This procedure involves transplanting blood stem cells, which travel to the bone marrow where they produce new blood cells and promote growth of new marrow.
A bone marrow transplant introduces healthy blood-forming cells from a donor into the patient's bloodstream, where they begin to develop and produce healthy red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. To prepare their bodies for the transplant, patients are given high doses of chemotherapy.
Your heart muscle needs its own supply of blood because, like the rest of your body, it needs oxygen and other nutrients to stay healthy. For this reason, your heart pumps oxygen-rich blood to its own muscle through your coronary arteries.
