Stem cell transplant performed on 9-year-old by BHU doctors

VARANASI: A team of doctors of the department of paediatrics, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University successfully carried out an autologous stem cell transplantation on a nine-year-old boy. The doctors said it is the first time that a surgery of this kind has been performed on a child in east UP region.
Talking to reporters on Thursday, professor in-charge Dr Vineeta Gupta said the boy from Sonbhadra district was suffering from relapsed Hodgkin’s lymphoma (a type of cancer affecting the lymph nodes) and hails from a poor family.
“He was admitted to an isolation room and administered high dose chemotherapy to kill the cancer cells. Thereafter, the stem cells were harvested from peripheral blood. Then conditioning chemotherapy was done after which stem cells were transplanted through central line,” she said.
“Initially, total leucocyte count of the boy reached near zero and it became a challenge for us to keep him safe from infections. Finally, on the seventh day, engraftment occurred and his count started improving. The patient was discharged around one month after admission,” Dr Gupta said.
This successful treatment has paved the way for treating children with relapsed Hodgkin’s lymphoma at IMS, BHU itself, she added.