Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) has become a cornerstone therapy for many malignant hematologic diseases, enabling long-term survival and, in some cases, cure. However, extensive clinical experience has shown that successful transplantation does not signify the end of treatment. Complications occurring before and after transplantation—often involving multiple organ systems—remain a major determinant of patient prognosis and quality of life.

At this critical stage, reliance on a single medical framework is frequently insufficient. Beyond precise disease control, clinicians face the challenge of stabilizing systemic function, improving physiological resilience, and guiding patients safely through a high-risk period of treatment. An integrative approach combining Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) offers unique clinical advantages in addressing these challenges.

Director Liu Huixia of GoBroad Healthcare Group has long specialized in integrative management of HSCT and transplant-related complications. She emphasizes that Western medicine and TCM are not competing paradigms, but rather complementary systems that can be strategically integrated to enhance clinical outcomes.

From Transplant Completion to Sustained Recovery: Complications as a Decisive Factor

For many patients with hematologic malignancies, completion of HSCT represents only one milestone in a prolonged therapeutic journey. Post-transplant complications—including fluid imbalance, infection, organ dysfunction, and prolonged systemic weakness—often play a decisive role in determining long-term survival.

Director Liu notes that after intensive chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and immunosuppressive conditioning, patients typically experience profound physiological stress. Even when the underlying malignancy is controlled, global dysregulation of metabolic, immune, and organ functions may persist, limiting recovery and increasing mortality risk. In such cases, conventional supportive care alone may reach a therapeutic ceiling.

TCM contributes an alternative perspective by focusing on restoring systemic regulation, supporting intrinsic recovery capacity, and improving overall physiological coordination, rather than targeting isolated symptoms.

Managing Severe Edema: Restoring Physiological Fluid Regulation

In one case involving a patient with refractory intestinal T-cell lymphoma, pre-transplant evaluation revealed severe generalized edema, pleural effusion, renal impairment, and hypoalbuminemia. Despite adequate fluid management and high-dose diuretics, fluid overload continued to worsen, significantly compromising transplant readiness.

Director Liu assessed that the condition was not simply due to excess fluid accumulation, but rather a failure of the body’s regulatory mechanisms responsible for fluid distribution and metabolism, compounded by reduced functional reserve. Treatment therefore focused on restoring circulatory regulation, improving renal fluid handling, and stabilizing vascular permeability.

Following integrative intervention, the patient’s urine output increased substantially, body weight decreased, and pleural effusion gradually resolved without invasive procedures. The patient subsequently completed conditioning and underwent successful stem cell transplantation. This strategy was later applied to multiple similar cases with reproducible benefits.
This experience underscores that, in transplant-related complications, addressing underlying regulatory dysfunction may be more effective than symptomatic fluid removal alone.

Collaborative Management of Severe Infection: Optimizing Systemic Resilience

Another patient with primary refractory acute leukemia presented with severe mixed infections involving multidrug-resistant bacteria, fungi, and viruses, along with strong donor-specific antibodies. Although HSCT represented the only curative option, infection control posed a major obstacle.

From a Western medicine standpoint, the multidisciplinary team continuously adjusted antimicrobial regimens based on microbiological findings, employing intensive combination therapy to gradually stabilize the infection and secure a narrow transplantation window. However, after entering the transplant unit, the patient continued to suffer from persistent cough, dyspnea, excessive sputum production, and marked intolerance to supine positioning, significantly impairing treatment tolerance.

Director Liu approached this condition by focusing on improving pulmonary function, enhancing airway clearance, and supporting respiratory resilience, while avoiding excessive suppression of the patient’s already compromised physiological state. With integrative treatment, respiratory symptoms improved rapidly. No severe pulmonary infection occurred during transplantation, imaging showed progressive resolution of inflammation, and post-transplant evaluation confirmed deep complete remission of the underlying disease.

This case illustrates the importance of strategic integration at critical clinical junctures: Western medicine controls infectious agents, while TCM-based approaches enhance systemic stability and recovery capacity.

Conceptual Framework: A Systems-Based Integrative Model

Director Liu’s clinical practice is grounded in a structured theoretical framework developed from long-term observation of transplant patients. This model conceptualizes transplant-related complications as the result of intense therapeutic stress leading to systemic disorganization and functional exhaustion.

Accordingly, treatment extends beyond managing discrete complications and instead prioritizes:

• Restoration of core physiological functions

• Re-establishment of coordination among organ systems

• Modulation of excessive treatment-related stress

• Attention to psychological and emotional well-being

Therapeutic strategies emphasize multidimensional regulation and individualized adjustment, allowing interventions to align closely with each patient’s dynamic clinical condition.

Conclusion: Integrative Medicine as an Outcome-Oriented Strategy

Director Liu emphasizes that integrative Chinese–Western medicine is not a theoretical juxtaposition, but an outcome-driven clinical strategy. In the high-risk, high-intensity context of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, meaningful progress depends on transcending disciplinary boundaries and focusing on the patient as a complex, adaptive system.

As clinical experience expands and evidence continues to accumulate, integrative approaches are expected to evolve into more standardized and widely applicable models within hematologic transplantation—ultimately offering more patients not only the possibility of survival, but also a better quality of life.