Some consumers who have received bone marrow or stem cell transplants may wonder if they can use AncestryDNA®.

We recommend that recipients of bone marrow or stem cell transplants do not take the AncestryDNA® test because their results may be impacted by their treatment. Instead, we recommend that a close relative, such as a biological parent or sibling, be tested.

Recipients of other organ transplants or blood transfusions, however, will likely not have their AncestryDNA® results affected. These individuals can use an AncestryDNA® test.

If I received a bone marrow transplant, can I use AncestryDNA®?

We don’t recommend that recipients of bone marrow transplants take the AncestryDNA® test. People who have received a bone marrow transplant as treatment for blood cancers or other blood diseases, like sickle cell anemia, leukemia, or lymphoma may have their DNA test results influenced by that treatment.

We test the DNA collected in a customer’s saliva sample, which contains cells from multiple sources, including often blood cells created by bone marrow. So if you received a bone marrow transplant, your saliva will probably include your own DNA and the DNA of your bone marrow donor. This combination of DNA can cause your results to be inconclusive or even possibly report the results of your donor. However, there is no impact to AncestryDNA® results if you are a bone marrow donor.

If I received a stem cell transplant, can I use AncestryDNA®?

We recommend that recipients of stem cell transplants do not take the AncestryDNA® test. This is because people who have received a stem cell transplant as treatment for blood cancers or other blood diseases may have their DNA test results impacted.

When we test the DNA collected in a customer’s saliva sample, that DNA usually contains cells from multiple sources, such as blood cells created by stem cells. If you received a stem cell transplant, your saliva will probably include your own DNA and the DNA of your stem cell donor. This combination of DNA can cause your results to be inconclusive. The test results may even possibly reflect those of your donor. If you are a stem cell donor, however, then there would be no impact to your AncestryDNA® test results.

If you have any further questions about conditions that could impact DNA test results, please contact Ancestry® Support.

Reference

Themeli Maria, Miguel Waterhouse, Juergen Finke, and Alexandros Spyridonidis. “DNA chimerism and its consequences after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.” Chimerism. January 2011. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3084955/.