My husband will be admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston on March 17 for his auto stem cell transplant.
We are curious what folks who have been through this have found comfortable to wear during their hospital stay.
We are thinking PJ bottoms, t-shirts, zip-up sweatshirts, slippers. Did you run hot or cold during this treatment? Is there certain clothing that make it easier for access to the port?
Please include any suggestions of nice things to have in the hospital.
Thanks!
Forums
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EF11 - Who do you know with myeloma?: husband
- When were you/they diagnosed?: November 2014
- Age at diagnosis: 43
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
Button shirts come in handy for the constant access to the port. Just some loose fitting clothing works good. Bring some tennis shoes so you can do some walking. He'll get bored and look to escape the room, until he starts felling bad, and after he recovers. And some ear plugs so he can shut out the constant "how you feeling".
Good luck to you two.
Good luck to you two.
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JBarnes - Name: Jerry Barnes
- Who do you know with myeloma?: Self
- When were you/they diagnosed?: Aug 17, 2012
- Age at diagnosis: 54
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
I haven't had a transplant, but I did have a harvest at the Mayo Clinic. The clothing question is a really good one, because there were things that I wished I'd known in advance! I was really self-conscious about the line in my neck, so I ended up going to a mall in Rochester and buying several turtleneck sweaters and high-necked sweatshirts to hide it. I also didn't realize that they'd be giving me a lot of fluids during the harvest process. My jeans got really uncomfortable, and I felt a lot better in sweatpants with an elastic waist. I also liked having shoes that slipped on and off easily.
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KarenC
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
Although my stem cell transplant occurred mostly on an outpatient basis, I was back and forth to the cancer centre every weekday. Also, when getting Aredia (bisphoshonate) infusions, I was there for several hours at a time too. I wore yoga pants for months it seemed, since they were comfortable, and had tops from knits too. While walking around the hospital, going up and down elevators, and to the cafeteria (not though right at the beginning of the stem cell process, when I was immune compromised and feeling tired and sick), I had often the pole that bags of hydrating fluid or treatments were attached to, wheeling along beside me. Thus, clothes that you would normally wear are OK, but just more comfortable and stretchy than normal. Because I had a central line, my winter coats had to be loose fitting also. Hope that helps, and good luck!.
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Nancy Shamanna - Name: Nancy Shamanna
- Who do you know with myeloma?: Self and others too
- When were you/they diagnosed?: July 2009
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
During my 3 week inpatient stay for my transplant, I found that wearing the hospital johnnies worked the best; better access to the port, and much easier for the quick and frequent trips to the bathroom. It saved a lot of laundry for my husband.
I was mostly cold, so I also had a thick bathrobe and slippers for when I went walking. I also had to wear full length compression stockings.
After coming home, I found that elastic waist pants or sweats were the most comfortable, until I lost the fluid buildup.
Best of luck to you!!
I was mostly cold, so I also had a thick bathrobe and slippers for when I went walking. I also had to wear full length compression stockings.
After coming home, I found that elastic waist pants or sweats were the most comfortable, until I lost the fluid buildup.
Best of luck to you!!
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janner - Who do you know with myeloma?: myself
- When were you/they diagnosed?: 2000
- Age at diagnosis: 47
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
Hi EF11,
The main things I wore during the day were shirts that could be buttoned down the front so they could easily access my port (as JBarnes suggested) and sweatpants (loose-fitting and stretchy as Nancy suggested). Socks and comfortable slippers also came in handy.
At night, I just wore pajamas, again with a button down front for the top.
For me there was something good about changing from the pajamas to the other clothes each morning. It made it feel more like a regular day, even if all I was doing that day was being quarantined in my hospital room.
Some people have said that having a stocking cap or something similar to cover your head to help retain heat is helpful, but I didn't use that myself.
Finally, having extra underwear is very important because of diarrhea.
Best wishes to your husband and to you for a smooth journey along the SCT road.
Mike
P.S. And since your husband is being admitted on March 17, and especially since he'll be in Boston, he better wear something green!
The main things I wore during the day were shirts that could be buttoned down the front so they could easily access my port (as JBarnes suggested) and sweatpants (loose-fitting and stretchy as Nancy suggested). Socks and comfortable slippers also came in handy.
At night, I just wore pajamas, again with a button down front for the top.
For me there was something good about changing from the pajamas to the other clothes each morning. It made it feel more like a regular day, even if all I was doing that day was being quarantined in my hospital room.
Some people have said that having a stocking cap or something similar to cover your head to help retain heat is helpful, but I didn't use that myself.
Finally, having extra underwear is very important because of diarrhea.
Best wishes to your husband and to you for a smooth journey along the SCT road.
Mike
P.S. And since your husband is being admitted on March 17, and especially since he'll be in Boston, he better wear something green!
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mikeb - Name: mikeb
- Who do you know with myeloma?: self
- When were you/they diagnosed?: 2009 (MGUS at that time)
- Age at diagnosis: 55
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
EF11,
At City of Hope, where I had my transplant, they can adjust the temperature in the rooms individually so I could have it set to what I needed to be comfortable.
I bought some light-weight warmup or track pants like those made by Nike, Under Armor, etc. They are stretchy and very comfortable and easy to take on and off.
I do not recall what exactly I had for a shirt but I remember it was something where they could access the port and I had an IV attached to that port most of the time.
I know when I had to use the wireless heart monitor I had to use the hospital provided tops as they had the pocket on the front to hold the monitor and the holes above the pocket for the wires to the pads. As remember now, as long as I was on the port IV and had the monitor, I used the hospital tops. I did not like that the tops were open in the back but I could put a second one on backwards to cover the back.
At City of Hope, where I had my transplant, they can adjust the temperature in the rooms individually so I could have it set to what I needed to be comfortable.
I bought some light-weight warmup or track pants like those made by Nike, Under Armor, etc. They are stretchy and very comfortable and easy to take on and off.
I do not recall what exactly I had for a shirt but I remember it was something where they could access the port and I had an IV attached to that port most of the time.
I know when I had to use the wireless heart monitor I had to use the hospital provided tops as they had the pocket on the front to hold the monitor and the holes above the pocket for the wires to the pads. As remember now, as long as I was on the port IV and had the monitor, I used the hospital tops. I did not like that the tops were open in the back but I could put a second one on backwards to cover the back.
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Eric Hofacket - Name: Eric H
- When were you/they diagnosed?: 01 April 2011
- Age at diagnosis: 44
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
Mass General is an excellent hospital so your husband will be in good hands there. I just got through with a stem cell transplant at Beth Israel in Boston first week of January. I was very late engrafting and I have only been home two weeks so the transplant experience is not far behind me.
As far as being comfortable, I would advise pajama tops with button front for easy access to the central line. If your husband likes T-shirts, get loose T-shirts with a big V-neck or scoop neck so the nurses can get to the central line, otherwise with a crew neck, they will have to pull it up from the waist and over the torso to get to the line. Slippers, cozy socks, robe, sweat pants, zip up sweat shirts for sitting up and being comfortable.
AT BIDMC, they had me suck popsicles for 1/2 hour before, during and after the transplant. Also they had special mouth washes to use. I did not get any mouth sores. I would recommend this approach. I brought my own soft toilet tissue and soft facial tissues because I was told I may have diarrhea for days, but actually I only had one bout of it. But anyhow, this is something you might want to have on hand for your husband's comfort. Also, some baby wipes for the bottom come in handy for keeping clean.
The boredom and fatigue are the biggest complaints. I had an iPad with me and was so glad to have it. The WiFi didn't always work but when it did I could check emails, cruise the web, listen to Pandora and even watched some movies on Netflix. (I got bored with the regular TV and the shows on major networks.) I brought some books but found it hard to concentrate; magazines were better as the articles in magazines are easy on the fatigued and shortened attention span.
Relax and take some time for yourself while your husband is undergoing the transplant. He will be in good hands. You need to rest up because when he gets out is when you will be needed the most.
The transplant was easier for me than I imagined. No vomiting with just a bit of nausea a few days.Through the whole transplant, my appetite was good and I was able to eat. I never ran a fever or infection. The worst was waiting and waiting for what seemed like an eternity to engraft and all the transfusions it required to maintain my blood cells and the Neupogen shots to boost WBC. Because my counts were so low, I could not even go out in the hall and walk and I literally walked circles around the room. Hopefully, your husband will engraft in a more timely manner than I did.
My best of luck to the both of you. God Bless.
As far as being comfortable, I would advise pajama tops with button front for easy access to the central line. If your husband likes T-shirts, get loose T-shirts with a big V-neck or scoop neck so the nurses can get to the central line, otherwise with a crew neck, they will have to pull it up from the waist and over the torso to get to the line. Slippers, cozy socks, robe, sweat pants, zip up sweat shirts for sitting up and being comfortable.
AT BIDMC, they had me suck popsicles for 1/2 hour before, during and after the transplant. Also they had special mouth washes to use. I did not get any mouth sores. I would recommend this approach. I brought my own soft toilet tissue and soft facial tissues because I was told I may have diarrhea for days, but actually I only had one bout of it. But anyhow, this is something you might want to have on hand for your husband's comfort. Also, some baby wipes for the bottom come in handy for keeping clean.
The boredom and fatigue are the biggest complaints. I had an iPad with me and was so glad to have it. The WiFi didn't always work but when it did I could check emails, cruise the web, listen to Pandora and even watched some movies on Netflix. (I got bored with the regular TV and the shows on major networks.) I brought some books but found it hard to concentrate; magazines were better as the articles in magazines are easy on the fatigued and shortened attention span.
Relax and take some time for yourself while your husband is undergoing the transplant. He will be in good hands. You need to rest up because when he gets out is when you will be needed the most.
The transplant was easier for me than I imagined. No vomiting with just a bit of nausea a few days.Through the whole transplant, my appetite was good and I was able to eat. I never ran a fever or infection. The worst was waiting and waiting for what seemed like an eternity to engraft and all the transfusions it required to maintain my blood cells and the Neupogen shots to boost WBC. Because my counts were so low, I could not even go out in the hall and walk and I literally walked circles around the room. Hopefully, your husband will engraft in a more timely manner than I did.
My best of luck to the both of you. God Bless.
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Melpen - Name: Melissa
- Who do you know with myeloma?: myself
- When were you/they diagnosed?: Feb 5, 2014
- Age at diagnosis: 57
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
I also recommend shirts with buttons so the nurses can access the port. Otherwise you have to take off your entire shirt for port access.
I also recommend stretchy bottoms because your weight is bound to fluctuate, between the diarrhea, swelling from all the fluids, and poor appetite.
I was generally cold during the whole process.
Good luck!
I also recommend stretchy bottoms because your weight is bound to fluctuate, between the diarrhea, swelling from all the fluids, and poor appetite.
I was generally cold during the whole process.
Good luck!
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Tracy J - Name: Tracy Jalbuena
- Who do you know with myeloma?: Me
- When were you/they diagnosed?: 2014
- Age at diagnosis: 42
Re: What to wear during inpatient stem cell transplant?
Lots of good suggestions and I will second most of them. I had sweat pants, knit tops, a zippered heavy knit jacket, sneakers, slippers, socks, and pajamas with a button top. The button top pajamas made it possible for the phlebotomist to wake me at 5am to access my central line and I could go right back to sleep while my blood was being drawn. Really anything comfortable is good. But, I would go for elastic waist pants so that if you have diarrhea you don't have to try to get buttons, snaps, zippers undone in a hurry. Also, lots of extra underwear is a really smart thing.
In addition to the clothing I brought a wool throw and my favorite pillow. I had my laptop, Ipod, ebook, DVD's, etc to keep me occupied. The ebook came in handy because I had downloaded lots of different kinds of books so that I would have a selection of easy to read books and ones that required more concentration to read and could choose depending on how I felt. I wasn't ever bored. I read, checked my email, watched movies, walked the halls and enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was like a mini vacation for me except that my touring was limited to the hospital unit and my meals weren't gourmet.
Try to give yourself a break while your husband is in the hospital. He will be well cared for. It isn't necessary to spend the entire day with him. He likely will appreciate the alone time when he doesn't have a whole lot of energy to socialize.
All the best to a successful transplant with few side effects for your husband. And, a worry free time for you.
Nancy in Phila
In addition to the clothing I brought a wool throw and my favorite pillow. I had my laptop, Ipod, ebook, DVD's, etc to keep me occupied. The ebook came in handy because I had downloaded lots of different kinds of books so that I would have a selection of easy to read books and ones that required more concentration to read and could choose depending on how I felt. I wasn't ever bored. I read, checked my email, watched movies, walked the halls and enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was like a mini vacation for me except that my touring was limited to the hospital unit and my meals weren't gourmet.
Try to give yourself a break while your husband is in the hospital. He will be well cared for. It isn't necessary to spend the entire day with him. He likely will appreciate the alone time when he doesn't have a whole lot of energy to socialize.
All the best to a successful transplant with few side effects for your husband. And, a worry free time for you.
Nancy in Phila
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NStewart - Name: Nancy Stewart
- Who do you know with myeloma?: self
- When were you/they diagnosed?: 3/08
- Age at diagnosis: 60
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