The Blood and Marrow Transplant Program Re-awarded FACT Accreditation

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The Blood and Marrow Transplant Program of Cancer Centers of the Carolinas and Bon Secours St. Francis Health System has been awarded re-accreditation by the Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) for autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation, including collection and processing. FACT is a voluntary inspection, which requires strict adherence to standards that promote the highest quality in stem cell transplantation. The FACT accreditation shows a commitment to excellence to provide the highest quality of transplant services in the community.

The major objective of FACT is to promote high quality patient care and laboratory performance. The inspection process is quality oriented and adheres to the FDA's rules for current Good Tissue Practice. The program has been awarded accreditation without any deficiencies being identified by the FACT inspectors or FACT Board of Directors! Currently, there are 155 FACT accredited facilities and less than 3% receive Level I accreditation - no deficiencies!

The Blood and Marrow Transplant program was the first autologous stem cell transplant program in the state of South Carolina to receive this prestigious accreditation. The program was first accredited in 2001 and the program must be re-inspected every 3 years. The Blood and Marrow Program has performed over 500 transplants with the overall survival and disease-free survival data tracking that of national data banks.

Stem cell transplantation is an aggressive therapy for patients with blood borne diseases such as leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, as well as some solid tumors. Autologous stem cell transplantations use stem cells harvested from the blood of the patient.

Cancer Centers of the Carolinas partners with Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital and The Blood Connection for the Blood and Marrow Transplant program.