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Printer Friendly Version Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplantation for Miscellaneous Solid Tumors in Adults
DESCRIPTIONHematopoietic Stem-Cell TransplantationHematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) refers to a procedure in which hematopoietic stem cells are infused to restore bone marrow function in cancer patients who receive bone marrow toxic doses of cytotoxic drugs with or without whole body radiation therapy. Bone marrow stem cells may be obtained from the transplant recipient (autologous SCT) or from a donor (allogeneic SCT). They can be harvested from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood and placenta shortly after delivery of neonates. Although cord blood is an allogeneic source, the stem cells in it are antigenically “naïve” and thus are associated with a lower incidence of rejection or graft versus host disease. Cord blood is discussed in greater detail in the Placental Umbilical Cord Blood as a Source of Stem Cells policy. Immunologic compatibility between infused stem cells and the recipient is not an issue in autologous HSCT. However, immunologic compatibility between donor and patient is a critical factor for achieving a good outcome of allogeneic HSCT. Compatibility is established by typing of human leukocyte antigens (HLA) using cellular, serologic, or molecular techniques. HLA refers to the tissue type expressed at the Class I and Class II loci on chromosome 6. Depending on the disease being treated, an acceptable donor will match the patient at all or most of the HLA loci (with the exception of umbilical cord blood). Conventional Preparative Conditioning for HSCT The conventional (“classical”) practice of allogeneic HSCT involves administration of cytotoxic agents (e.g., cyclophosphamide, busulfan) with or without total body irradiation at doses sufficient to destroy endogenous hematopoietic capability in the recipient. The beneficial treatment effect in this procedure is due to a combination of initial eradication of malignant cells and subsequent graft-versus-malignancy (GVM) effect mediated by non-self immunologic effector cells that develop after engraftment of allogeneic stem cells within the patient’s bone marrow space. While the slower GVM effect is considered to be the potentially curative component, it may be overwhelmed by extant disease without the use of pretransplant conditioning. However, intense conditioning regimens are limited to patients who are sufficiently fit medically to tolerate substantial adverse effects that include pre-engraftment opportunistic infections secondary to loss of endogenous bone marrow function and organ damage and failure caused by the cytotoxic drugs. Furthermore, in any allogeneic HSCT, immune suppressant drugs are required to minimize graft rejection and GVHD, which also increases susceptibility of the patient to opportunistic infections. The success of autologous HSCT is predicated on the ability of cytotoxic chemotherapy with or without radiation to eradicate cancerous cells from the blood and bone marrow. This permits subsequent engraftment and repopulation of bone marrow space with presumably normal hematopoietic stem cells obtained from the patient prior to undergoing bone marrow ablation. As a consequence, autologous HSCT is typically performed as consolidation therapy when the patient’s disease is in complete remission. Patients who undergo autologous HSCT are susceptible to chemotherapy-related toxicities and opportunistic infections prior to engraftment, but not GVHD. Reduced-Intensity Conditioning for Allogeneic HSCT Reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) refers to the pretransplant use of lower doses or less intense regimens of cytotoxic drugs or radiation than are used in traditional full-dose myeloablative conditioning treatments. The goal of RIC is to reduce disease burden, but also to minimize as much as possible associated treatment-related morbidity and non-relapse mortality (NRM) in the period during which the beneficial GVM effect of allogeneic transplantation develops. Although the definition of RIC remains arbitrary, with numerous versions employed, all seek to balance the competing effects of NRM and relapse due to residual disease. RIC regimens can be viewed as a continuum in effects, from nearly totally myeloablative, to minimally myeloablative with lymphoablation, with intensity tailored to specific diseases and patient condition. Patients who undergo RIC with allogeneic HSCT initially demonstrate donor cell engraftment and bone marrow mixed chimerism. Most will subsequently convert to full-donor chimerism, which may be supplemented with donor lymphocyte infusions to eradicate residual malignant cells. HSCT in Solid Tumors in Adults HSCT is an established treatment for certain hematologic malignancies, however, its use in solid tumors in adults continues to be largely experimental. Initial enthusiasm for the use of autologous HSCT transplant with the use of high-dose chemotherapy and stem cells for solid tumors has waned with the realization that dose intensification often fails to improve survival, even in tumors with a linear-dose response to chemotherapy. With the advent of nonmyeloablative allogeneic transplant, interest has shifted to exploring the generation of alloreactivity to metastatic solid tumors via a graft-versus-tumor effect of donor-derived T cells. Miscellaneous Solid Tumors in Adults Hematopoietic SCT as a treatment either of breast, ovarian, or testicular cancer, ependymoma, or malignant glioma is addressed in separate policies, Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplantation for Breast Cancer, Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplantation for Epithelial Ovarian Cancer, Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplantation for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma, Autologous Stem-Cell Transplantation for Malignant Astrocytomas and Gliomas, respectively. This policy collectively addresses other solid tumors of adults for which SCT has been investigated, including lung cancer; malignant melanoma; tumors of the gastrointestinal tract (include colon, rectum, pancreas, stomach, esophagus, gallbladder, and bile duct); male and female genitourinary systems (e.g., renal cell carcinoma, cervical carcinoma, cancer of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and prostate gland); tumors of the head and neck; soft tissue sarcoma; thyroid tumors; tumors of the thymus; and tumors of unknown primary origin.
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POLICYNo benefits will be provided for a covered transplant procedure unless the Member receives prior authorization through Case Management from Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi.Autologous or allogeneic stem cell transplant is considered investigational for the following malignancies:
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POLICY EXCEPTIONSFor Federal Employee Program (FEP) subscribers, the Service Benefit Plan includes specific conditions in which autologous or allogeneic blood or marrow stem cell transplants would be considered eligible for coverage.
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POLICY GUIDELINESInvestigative service is defined as the use of any treatment procedure, facility, equipment, drug, device, or supply not yet recognized by certifying boards and/or approving or licensing agencies or published peer review criteria as standard, effective medical practice for the treatment of the condition being treated and as such therefore is not considered medically necessary. The coverage guidelines outlined in the Medical Policy Manual should not be used in lieu of the Member's specific benefit plan language.
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POLICY HISTORY3/25/2004: See policy "High-Dose Chemotherapy with Hematopoietic Stem Cell Support for Malignancies" prior to 3/25/2004, separate policy developed and aligned with BCBSA policy # 8.01.24 per approval by Medical Policy Advisory Committee (MPAC)7/19/2004: Code Reference section completed 11/18/2004: Reviewed by MPAC, no changes 10/20/2005: Code Reference section updated, codes 38230, G0355-G0364 added, J9000-J9999 deleted; ICD9 procedure codes 41.02, 41.03, 41.04, 41.09 added 3/15/2006: Coding updated. CPT4/HCPCS 2006 revisions added to policy. 9/18/2007: Policy reviewed, no changes 12/19/2007: Coding updated per 2008 CPT/HCPCS revisions 9/26/2008: Policy description updated, policy statements unchanged. "High-dose chemotherpay" term removed from title 1/6/2009: Policy reviewed, "prior authorization before evaluation" deleted 04/26/2010: Policy title revised to change “Stem-Cell Support” to “Stem-Cell Transplantation.” Policy description updated regarding conventional preparative conditioning and reduced-intensity conditioning for HSCT; however, the policy statement was unchanged. FEP verbiage added to the Policy Exceptions section. Added new CPT codes 86825 and 86826. Deleted HCPCS G0265, G0266, and G0267 from the code section as these codes were deleted on 12/31/2007. Added HCPCS S2140 and S2142 to the non-covered table. 10/21/2010: Policy reviewed; no changes. 10/05/2011: Policy reviewed; no changes. 12/13/2012: Policy reviewed; no changes.
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SOURCE(S)Blue Cross Blue Shield Association policy # 8.01.24
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CODE REFERENCEThis is not an all-inclusive list of non-covered procedure codes.All codes billed for this procedure are considered investigational and not eligible for coverage. Non-Covered Codes
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