Making stem cell transplants safer and more effective For cancer patients, the use of hematopoietic stem cell transplants can be a game changer in terms of treatment and recovery. However, most people need to undergo a combination of chemotherapy and radiation before transplants become an option. A new article in Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, sheds light on progress toward making stem cell transplants safer and more effective. Chemotherapy and radiation are used as a prelude to stem cell transplants in a process known as conditioning, writes Associate Editor Ryan Cross. This allows doctors to clear out diseased cells in the body and make room for healthy ones, but conditioning can be very harsh; it also kills healthy cells and can cause significant side effects, making recovery that much harder. Therefore, stem cell transplants are often under-used. Researchers and drug companies are now working to develop new targeted conditioning therapies with fewer side effects, which would allow more patients to safely undergo stem cell treatments.