After meticulous planning and with the approval of the Ministry of Health, Vinmec International General Hospital performed the first stem cell transplant to cure cirrhosis. The patient's health has stabilized and there have been no issues one week after the transplant. The patient will reportedly undergo their first assessment following the transplant to gauge how their liver function has improved after three months.
Vinmec acquired patient Mai Thanh Hai (54 years old, from Quang Binh) at the end of February. She was hospitalized with a hepatic coma, kidney failure, and gastrointestinal hemorrhage as a result of complications from cirrhosis. The patient moreover has diabetes.
Only a few nations currently use stem cell transplantation to treat cirrhosis, and Vietnam is one of the pioneers in this field.
Mr. Hai has been receiving treatment for his liver condition in numerous hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, Central Vietnam, and Singapore for more than ten years. But after a brief period of stabilization, the patient relapsed. Even with ongoing pharmacological therapy, the process of liver failure continues to create severe hepatic coma since cirrhosis is already in the final stage. There was no need for a liver transplant because the patient had diabetes and kidney failure. Therefore, following discussion, medical professionals determined that a stem cell transplant is the patient's best course of action.
The most cutting-edge and contemporary way of treating cirrhosis nowadays is autologous stem cell transplantation. The principle is to take stem cells out of the patient's bone marrow and give them to them via the hepatic artery. The body's stem cells will stop the fibrosis process, lessen inflammation, and stimulate the formation of blood vessels in the liver. A portion of those stem cells can develop into healthy liver cells, aiding in the restoration of damaged liver cells.
According to Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Liem, Director of Vinmec Institute of Stem Cell Research and Gene Technology and in charge of the High-Tech Unit for the treatment of autism and cerebral palsy, "the method of stem cell transplantation to treat cirrhosis has contributed a new method to treat cirrhosis in Vietnam today."
Stem cell transplantation for cirrhosis has the benefit of a wide range of low-risk therapy indications. Anti-rejection medications are not required, the course of treatment is brief, and the effects of the therapy outlast those of the medicine. Only a few nations currently use stem cell transplantation to treat cirrhosis, and Vietnam is one of the pioneers in this field.
Vinmec International General Hospital has performed about 80 stem cell transplants since the start of 2014 to treat a variety of illnesses like spinal cord discomfort, paralysis caused by spinal injury, knee osteoarthritis, congenital biliary atrophy, etc. with extremely positive outcomes. But in Vinmec and also in Vietnam, this is the first stem cell therapy for cirrhosis.
Professor. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Liem stated: "Patient Hai faces numerous challenges because he is still receiving dialysis and suffers from a blood clotting condition. As a result, numerous consultations have been held to harmonize and implement the transplantation process, from patient mobilization and separation to stem cell infusion and dialysis.
The patient underwent a transplant two weeks after receiving brief therapy to stabilize their liver condition. Mr. Hai's health had stabilized after one week, and on April 8, 2015, he was released. The patient will likely undergo a liver function test and a liver biopsy in the upcoming three months to determine how much the liver's portals have improved. From there, it is able to assess explicitly how well stem cell transplantation for cirrhosis has worked.
According to GS. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Liem, "Vinmec is continuing to explore and implement this technology to treat a number of additional neurological illnesses in both children and adults based on the success of stem cell transplantation. Cirrhosis stem cell transplantation has helped develop a novel way to treat the disease in Vietnam today.
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