Growth factors for acute myeloid leukaemia

Men and women discussing acute myeloid leukaemia

This page tells you about growth factors for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). You can find information about

A quick guide to what's on this page
What growth factors are
Why you may have growth factors
Having growth factors
Growth factor side effects

Growth factors for acute myeloid leukaemia

Growth factors are natural substances that stimulate the bone marrow to make blood cells. Some growth factors are made artificially and used as treatments. They increase the number of white blood cells and stem cells in the blood. Doctors sometimes use the growth factor filgrastim (G-CSF or Neupogen) for people who are at risk of infection after chemotherapy for AML. It can help you to make white cells more quickly after chemotherapy and lower the risk of infection.

Some people have growth factors to make their bone marrow produce extra stem cells before having the stem cells collected (a stem cell harvest) for a stem cell transplant.

You have growth factors as an injection under the skin. This is usually in the tummy or into an arm or a leg.

Growth factor side effects

Growth factor injections can have side effects. Some people have itching around the injection site. You may have some pain in your bones after you have had a few injections. Your bone marrow is making so many blood cells that it can get quite crowded and make your bones ache. You can usually control the pain easily with a mild painkiller, such as paracetamol. It usually lasts a few days.

Some people get a high temperature (fever) when they have growth factors. Tell your doctor or nurse if this happens to you, because fever can also be a sign of infection.

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Growth factors are natural substances that stimulate the bone marrow to make blood cells. Some growth factors are made artificially to use as treatments. They increase the number of white blood cells and stem cells in the blood. Doctors sometimes use the growth factor called granulocyte colony stimulating factor or G-CSF during AML treatment. There are different types of G-CSF, including filgrastim and lenograstim and a long acting type called pegfilgrastim.

Doctors use growth factors

After chemotherapy
Before taking stem cells for a transplant

Growth factors after chemotherapy

You may have growth factors if you are at risk of infection after AML chemotherapy. Chemotherapy kills off your healthy white blood cells as well as the leukaemic ones. You are at risk of infection while your white cell count is low. If you get an infection, your body is not able to fight it off as well as usual. So infections can make you more ill than they normally would. They can even be life threatening. A low level of white cells is called neutropenia.

You may have growth factors if you have neutropenia for a long time. The growth factors help your white blood cell count go up more quickly. This may lower the risk of infection.

Growth factors before taking stem cells for a transplant

Some people have growth factors before having stem cells collected for a stem cell transplant. Daily growth factor injections make your bone marrow grow many more stem cells than normal. These extra stem cells spill over into the bloodstream. They can then be collected by a machine. They are frozen and kept until you need to have them back as a stem cell transplant, after intensive chemotherapy.

There is detailed information about stem cell transplants in the cancer treatment section.

You have growth factors as an injection under the skin. This is usually in the tummy (abdomen), or into an arm or a leg.

Some people get a high temperature (fever) when they have growth factors. Tell your doctor or nurse if this happens to you, because fever can also be a sign of infection.