Woodlands Hospital launches stem cell treatment for cancer

Feb 06, 2023 News

Kaieteur News – Cancer patients and persons suffering from chronic diseases no longer have to spend thousands of dollars to travel overseas for Stem Cell and Immunotherapy services because these services will be available in Guyana at Woodlands Hospital.

Dr. Pramod Tembi sharing his experience with Stem Cell therapy at Saturday launch of the new treatment services in Guyana

The private hospital on Saturday officially launched the cancer and chronic diseases treatment services, the first of its kind in Guyana. Woodlands partnered with Fidelity Health Care Limited of Trinidad and Tobago to make the therapy treatments available in Guyana.

Speaking at the launch, Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony noted that it was only last year that the government passed a legislation that caters for transplants in Guyana, which includes stem cell therapy and expressed how pleased he is that Woodlands Hospital jumped at the opportunity to be the first in bringing the treatment to the country.

President Mohamed Irfaan Ali delivering his feature address.

Stem cell therapy, also known as regenerative medicine, promotes the repair response of diseased, dysfunctional or injured tissue using stem cells or their derivatives. It is the next chapter in organ transplantation and uses cells instead of donor organs, which are limited in supply.

Immunotherapy on the other hand is a type of cancer treatment that helps your immune system fight cancer. The immune system is made up of white blood cells, organs and tissues that help your body fight infections and other diseases. Immunotherapy is a type of biological therapy which means that it is a type of treatment that uses substances made from living organisms to treat cancer.

President Ali being given a tour of the Woodlands Hospital facilities

For those who might not be so confident in this new form medical science, one of the doctors at Woodlands Hospital, Dr. Pramod Tembi, is a living testimony of how this modern treatment can do wonders.

Dr. Tembi, at the launch, told the attendees that he was suffering from an autoimmune disease for a number of years and it caused him a lot of pain in his spine. However, he was introduced to stem therapy in 2019 by a friend in Trinidad and it turned his life around.

Minister of Health Frank Anthony making his address during the launch

He explained that stem cells were taken from his bone marrow and injected into his spine and today, he is able to stand and move around without pain.

Meanwhile, President Mohammed Irfaan Ali said that “I am very pleased at the direction at which private and public healthcare is going in the next seven years” while noting that healthcare is very important.

The president said that “Guyana’s medical talent” is among the best in the world while adding that he is working towards setting up a National Medical Scientific Council “That brings our best talent to investigate, not old technology, the best-in-class medical science development that can be applied to Guyana to help us here.”

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Guyana, hospital, Immunotherapy, Stem cell, therapy, treatment, Woodlands

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