Bone marrow transplant for free at Borivli centre

The Borivli thalassemia treatment centre has attractive paintings on the walls to bring a smile to paediatric cancer patients

Come March and the BMC-run Thalassemia Treatment Centre in Borivli will conduct bone marrow transplant (BMT) free of cost for hundreds of blood cancer patients undergoing treatment in the city. Currently, this facility is only available at Sion and Tata Memorial Hospitals.

Speaking to mid-day, Dr Mamta Mangalani, director of the centre - which also happens to be the first-of-its-kind specialist medical facility for blood disorders - said, "At present, hundreds of patients are undergoing treatment at our centre. We intend to start the free BMT procedure by the end of March. The surgery costs between R10 lakh and R15 lakh at private hospitals. The high cost of the process is usually why several patients refrain from undergoing it. We are hoping that our endeavour will help thousands of blood cancer patients lead better lives. The free BMT procedure can be availed by children as well as adult thalassemia patients."

Dr Mangalani added that around 15 patients have registered for procedure so far and eight beds have been allotted for the initiative.

Incidentally, the Borivli thalassemia centre has treated over 1,200 people in the last four months, among which 438 were new patients. An official from the centre said, "Around 803 people treated since October were follow-up patients and 93 of them registered for blood transfusion. In the OPD segment, 1,505 patients have been treated so far, which comprises 1,241 thalassemia patients, 187 hematology and 77 patients with blood cancer."

Significantly, the Borivli thalassemia centre, which was built at a cost of Rs 4 crore, has attractive paintings on the walls to bring a smile to paediatric cancer patients. Giving more options to cancer patients in the city, the centre has decided to keep six extra beds for those suffering from thalassemia.

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