Vascular access for autologous peripheral blood stem cells collection by large volume leukapheresis: Single center experience.

Introduction: Peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) harvesting requires reliable and safe vascular access. In our institution, a change of practice was implemented and the central venous catheter (CVC) placement for all autologous PBSC collections was abandoned in favor of a careful evaluation of peripheral venous access (PVA) for each individual patient. The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate the rate of patients with adequate peripheral veins for autologous PBSC collection and compare patient characteristics, collection efficacy, and complication rate between patients with PVA and CVC.