Basic information? Bone marrow transplant restores stem cells that have been destroyed by high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. After being treated with high-dose cancer drugs and/or radiation, the patient receives harvested stem cells, which travel to the bone marrow and begin producing new blood cells. Bone marrow is the soft, spongy material found inside bones. It contains immature cells known as hematopoietic or blood-forming stem cells. Bone marrow is the spongy tissue inside some bones, such as the hip and thigh bones. It contains immature cells, called stem cells. Stem cells can develop into red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body, white blood cells, which fight infections, and platelets, which help blood clot. It is used to treat diseases such as leukemia, anemia and multiple myeloma. .Before undergoing a transplant, you must undergo high doses of chemotherapy and possibly radiation. This destroys defective stem cells in the bone marrow. It also suppresses the body's immune system so that it does not attack the new stem cells after the transplant. How is it used/benefits? Bone marrow transplant (BMT) restores stem cells that have been destroyed by high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. One reason BMT is used in cancer treatment is to allow patients to receive very high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy generally target rapidly dividing cells. They are used to treat cancer because cancer cells divide more often than most healthy cells. However, because bone marrow cells also divide frequently, high-dose treatments can severely damage or destroy a patient's bone marrow. Without heat... half of the paper... such as nausea, vomiting, fatigue, loss of appetite, mouth ulcers, hair loss and skin reactions. Potential long-term risks include complications of pretransplant chemotherapy and radiation therapy, such as infertility (the inability to father children); cataracts (clouding of the lens of the eye, which causes loss of vision); secondary (new) tumors; and liver, kidney, lung, and/or heart damage. You can easily get infections after the transplant because your immune system is weak. The risk of infections decreases as the immune system recovers. Sometimes transplant recipients are given vaccines to prevent viruses and infections, such as flu and pneumonia. If you develop an infection, your doctor will prescribe medicine to treat it. GVHD is a common complication for people who receive stem cells from a donor. In GVHD, new stem cells attack your body.