Skip the primary navigation if you do not want to read it as the next section.
Skip the main content if you do not want to read it as the next section.
Total body irradiation (TBI) is radiotherapy to your whole body, given before a bone marrow transplant. This is given in conjunction with chemotherapy.
The aim of TBI is to get rid of all the bone marrow. Once the bone marrow has gone, this will need to be replaced with your bone marrow transplant. The new marrow may be donated by a close relative, or by an unrelated donor who is a very close match.
Alternatively, you may be given some of your own marrow back. If this is the case, peripheral stem cells, which produce bone marrow or healthy bone marrow, are removed (harvested) from you before TBI, and stored until it is time for the transplant.
