Hematopoietic cell infusion for the treatment of nuclear disaster victims: New data from the Chernobyl accident

Abstract

Purpose: To present previously unavailable data on the use of stem cell administration to aid recovery of victims of the Chernobyl disaster. On 26 April 1986, an accident at Unit 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant took place during the planned test of one of the safety systems. The diagnosis of acute radiation syndrome (ARS) was confirmed in 134 individuals exposed to high levels of radiation. There were nine patients heretofore unreported in the scientific literature who underwent intraosseous injections of allogeneic bone marrow cells in Kyiv.

Conclusions: Transplantation was associated with significantly shortened time to recovery of granulocyte and platelet counts in these patients. While current guidelines would certainly include the use of cytokines, these data provide an indication of the effectiveness of stem cell transplant to treat victims of radiation exposure.

Keywords:

• Chernobyl disaster
• stem cell transplantation
• cellular therapy
• emergency response

Acknowledgements

We thank all physicians and staff who have cared for ARS patients in 1986, and especially Prof. Viktor Klymenko, Prof. Mikola Bondar, Prof. Leonid Kindzelskyi, Prof. Georgiy Kogut, Prof. Galina Gluchenkaja, and their co-workers, who arranged and performed the transplant procedures in Kyiv.

Declaration of interest:

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. Supported by NIH U19 AI 067798.