The diagnosis ofGvHD is often complexand may require multiple tests and procedures.
Although GvHD can sometimes be diagnosed based on symptoms alone, other cases are not so straightforward.
In cases like these, there is a strict set of criteria that governs the diagnosis of GvHD.
Morsa Images / Getty Images
Self-Checks
There are no home tests or self-exams available to diagnose GvHD.
With that said, recognizing the signs and symptoms of GvHD can help you seek timely diagnosis and treatment.
Chronic GvHD represents the broadening of theautoimmune-like attack on normal tissues.
Symptoms not only tend to be more diverse than acute GvHD but often more severe.
GvHD can differ from one person to the next.
Acute and chronic symptoms can sometimes overlap or develop in different patterns.
In short, a symptom suggestive of GvHD may end up having nothing to do with GvHD.
Not everyone with symptoms of GvHD requires confirmatory testing.
Physical Examination
Not everyone with symptoms of GvHD requires confirmatory testing.
Some symptoms are characteristic enough to render a diagnosis on their own.
Diagnostic symptoms are those regarded as defining features of chronic GvHD and do not require additional testing.
Distinctive symptoms are those that only suggest chronic GvHD and do require additional testing.
More than one test is sometimes needed.
The other commonly used classification model is the International Bone Marrow Transplant Registry (IBMTR) grading system.
The IBMTR grading systemclassifies GvHD based on the cumulative involvement of skin, gastrointestinal, and liver symptoms.
Chronic GvHD
The grading of chronic GvHD takes a slightly different approach.
Wolfe D, Lawitschka A.Chapter 44: Chronic graft-versus-host disease.
In: The EBMT Handbook: Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapies [Internet].
The 2014 Diagnosis and Staging Working Group report.Biol Blood Marrow Transplant.2015;21(3):389-401.e1.
doi:10.1016/j.bbmt.2014.12.001
Lee SJ.Classification systems for chronic graft-versus-host disease.Blood.
2011;117(24):6714-20. doi:10.1182/blood-2010-12-323824
