Bone marrow transplantation in Shwachman-Diamond syndrome

Shwachman-Diamond syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by exocrine pancreatic dysfunction, metaphyseal dysostosis and bone marrow dysfunction with a predilection towards severe hematologic complications. Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation has been used as a therapeutic approach for SDS patients with serious hematologic abnormalities with mixed results. There is some concern that these patients may be more susceptible to early (<100 days) transplant-related complications than other transplant groups. We report a patient who received a matched allogeneic transplant without developing serious early transplant-related complications, but eventually died from relapse of his disease. Although experience is limited, a review of the reported cases suggests patients with SDS may be transplanted without significant short-term morbidity and mortality.