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The UK’s stem cell transplant system is potentially putting the lives of blood cancer patients at risk as a result of inadequate infrastructure and a lack of long-term planning, a parliamentary report has found.
A hematopoietic stem cell transplant, often referred to as a bone marrow transplant, is a medical procedure in which stem cells from a healthy donor are transplanted into a patient.
It can be a life-saving treatment for serious diseases such as blood cancer, blood disorders and some auto-immune conditions. About 4,000 stem cell transplants are performed in the UK each year.
The report, by the all-party parliamentary group on ethnicity transplantation and transfusion, found that the UK’s stem cell transplant system was not fit for purpose, with the system “no longer resilient, sustainable nor equitable” or meeting patients’ needs.
Among the problems was the fact that in 2024-25, only 24% of stem cell transplants in the UK used a UK donor. This is an issue because, according to the UK Stem Cell Strategic Forum expert group, the UK should have a supply of 45% of UK...