Spectrum Health Receives State Approval for Adult Bone Marrow Transplants

Will Begin Only Program In Western Half of Michigan

Spectrum Health’s request to offer adult bone marrow transplants received final approval on July 13 from the Michigan Department of Community Health. This is the only adult program in the western half of the state.

Spectrum Health plans on performing the first transplant within the next few months and hopes to perform approximately 12 within the first year. State approval requires that Spectrum Health perform the first transplant within one year of final approval.

“This is great news for the people of West Michigan. Having a bone marrow transplant program in our region means better access, more convenience and less cost for cancer patients,” said Matt Van Vranken, Executive Vice President, Spectrum Health System and president, Spectrum Health Hospital Group. “We made a case that we had the expertise and infrastructure in place for such a needed program and the state agreed.”

Among the initial steps in developing the program are modifying eight rooms in the Lettinga Inpatient Cancer Center at Butterworth Hospital to meet the needs of transplant patients. A national search for a bone marrow transplant specialist to head the program has begun.

While the search for a permanent medical director is under way, transplant patients will be cared for by Aly Mageed, MD. He is division chief of the pediatric bone marrow transplant program at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital and has previously performed adult bone marrow transplants.

The state’s approval comes after Spectrum Health petitioned the Certificate of Need Commission in 2009 to change its standards to allow an adult bone marrow transplant program in the western half of Michigan. Spectrum Health stated that not having a program here interrupted the continuity of care, and was a burden to patients and families in terms of cost, time, travel and support. The new standards went into effect in May.

In applying for the transplant approval, Spectrum Health noted that it already had many of the necessary elements in place. The program will build upon the success of the pediatric transplant program utilizing the expertise and quality standards already in place on the Butterworth campus. Spectrum Health’s Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion will be the site for many of the pre and post transplant treatments and procedures.

Spectrum Health is a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan that offers a full continuum of care through the Spectrum Health Hospital Group, a collection of eight hospitals and more than 140 service sites; the Spectrum Health Medical Group, mmpc® and West Michigan Heart—physician groups totaling more than 400 providers; and Priority Health, a health plan with nearly 580,000 members. Spectrum Health’s 16,000 employees, 1,500 medical staff members and 2,000 volunteers are committed to delivering the highest quality care. The organization provided $79.4 million in community benefit during its 2009 fiscal year. In 2010, Spectrum Health was named a Top 10 Health System by Thomson Reuters.