BACKGROUND: To increase the number of circulating hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) in the blood, mobilization treatments are currently being used. G-CSF and G-CSF plus chemotherapy are the most common methods of hematopoietic stem cells separation used in Poland.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: We observed patients who failed an effective hematopoietic stem cell mobilization with G-CSF or with G-CSF plus chemotherapy. The separation was considered unsuccessful if within a period of 4 consecutive days of separation, the number of obtained CD 34+ cells was lower than 2.0×10^6/kg of bodyweight. The study involved 32 patients whose CD34+ cells were collected and the collection for autologous transplantation failed. The study included 20 men and 12 women. Among all 32 patients, 28 had multiple myeloma, 3 had DLBCL lymphoma, and 1 had Hodgkin’s disease.

RESULTS: Separation was unsuccessful in only 3 patients; the remaining 29 achieved an average of 4.83×10^6 CD34+ cells per kg of bodyweight. We conclude that plerixafor is an important tool in obtaining sufficient quantities of cells for hematopoietic stem cells separation.

CONCLUSIONS: The use of plerixafor is a sufficient and safe option for stem cells mobilization in autologous transplantations.

Keywords: Hematopoietic Cell Growth Factors, Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization