RATIONALE: Ondansetron may help lessen or prevent nausea and vomiting in patients undergoing stem cell transplant.

PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well ondansetron works in preventing nausea and vomiting in patients undergoing stem cell transplant.

OBJECTIVES:

I. To determine whether the incidence of nausea and vomiting related to administration of autologous hematopoetic stem cells cryopreserved in DMSO can be reduced by the use of a single dose of intravenous ondansetron prior to the stem cell infusion.

II. To determine the number of patients who experience nausea and vomiting.

OUTLINE: Patients receive ondansetron IV once 30-60 minutes before undergoing autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation.

Inclusion

• Autologous PBSC transplant patient
• English-speaking
• Planned cryopreserved PBSC infusion at the SCCA outpatient clinic

Exclusion

• History of prior autologous transplant
• Non-English-speaking
• Planned cryopreserved PBSC infusion at the UWMC inpatient unit
• Infusion of cryopreserved PBSC that are thawed and washed to remove DMSO prior to infusion
• Allergy or adverse reaction to ondansetron