The aim of this study, carried out at the Institut Paoli-Calmettes (Marseille-France), was to compare, in terms of monetary and non monetary costs, alternate procedures for hematopoietic stem cells collection i.e. peripheral blood stem cells collection (PBSCC) and bone marrow collection (BMC) used in cancer therapies. Monetary costs have been evaluated by calculating the direct costs of the two types of procedures and non monetary costs by comparing anxiety, discomfort and pain of cancer patients submitted to PBSCC or BMC. Patients, randomized (7/1993-2/1994), in view of autologous transplantation, to receive the first procedure or the second one received three self-administered questionnaires to complete before, during and after the procedure. Pain was assessed using visual analogical scale and McGill Pain questionnaire. Anxiety was evaluated by means of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Results showed that, under some conditions, presently realized in the current practice, direct costs of PBSCC (10,140 to 13,780 FF) were lower than BMC ones (16,509 FF) and that anxiety and pain experienced by patients submitted to PBSCC, with or without femoral catheter, were significantly less severe than in other group patients (State anxiety, before procedure : p < 0.01 ; pain related to the procedure assessed on VAS : p < 0.001 and total McGill score : p < 0.00001). These findings justify the substitution of bone marrow transplantation by peripheral blood stem cells transplantation, provided there is a demonstration of similar medical efficacy for cancer therapy.