Peripheral blood monocyte count as an aid in optimizing progenitor collection in children

CD34 enumeration, although established as the gold standard for timing peripheral blood progenitor cell harvests, is not always available. We investigated whether the peripheral blood monocyte population could be used to assist in predicting the peak of circulating progenitors for harvesting autologous blood stem cells in children. A retrospective analysis was done on 140 harvests in 40 patients. Cross-tabulation analysis of peripheral blood CD34 counts and monocyte counts showed a good correlation. We conclude that in the absence of CD34 results, the monocyte count gives a good indication of early marrow regeneration and helps in predicting optimal time for harvest.