Karnataka: Bone marrow facility inaugurated at Kasturba hospital

A bone marrow transplant facility was recently inaugurated by H.S. Ballal, pro-chancellor of Manipal University at Shirdi Sai Baba Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Kasturba Hospital.

The new facility is equipped with two beds, and is also fully equipped to facilitate autologous stem cell transplant.

A senior oncologist at the hospital further implied that soon there will additional facilities added at the hospital to facilitate allogenic transplant. This will help in curing hematologicalmalignancies.

As reported by Hindu, Karthik S. Udupa, consultant medical oncologist at the hospital, said that autologous stem cell transplant was done in cancers such as multiple myeloma, relapsed Hodgkin lymphoma, relapsed non Hodgkin lymphoma, relapsed acute pro-myelocytic leukemia and paediatric tumours like high risk Neuroblastoma.

There are plans to start allogenic transplant facility also in the near future, to cure hematological malignancies such as relapsed acute lymphoblasatic leukemia, mhigh risk acute myeloid leukemia, high risk myelodysplastic syndrome, aplastic anaemia, he said.