Blood Type & Bone Marrow Transplants

Blood types do not matter, and are not used in the bone marrow matching process; before marrow is transplanted, existing bone marrow and blood stem cells are destroyed. During marrow transplants, new blood stem cells are interveneously injected into the bloodstream of the recipient to make their way into the marrow. Remaining blood cells in the recipient die off within hours of the initiation of a transplant (as they were radiated prior to the transplant). The transplanted marrow then builds new blood stem cells, and in some situations the recipient's blood type will change.