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Some months ago, the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) successfully pioneered stem cell transplantation surgery in Nigeria. On the continent, this medical feat has previously been carried out only in Egypt and South Africa. The successful, cutting-edge procedure by an 18-man team led by Dr. Nosakhare Bazuaye was conducted in the hospital on a seven-year-old sickle cell anaemia patient, Mathew Ndik.

The institution commenced the project three years ago when it sent the experts to Basel, Switzerland to acquire requisite knowledge for stem cell transplantation procedure. Nigerians can now access the novel medical procedure for N2.5 million as against the N40 million needed for same outside the country.

This development represents great news for sickle cell patients and others that require regenerative medicine for a cure. This new procedure can also offer relief or even cures for many serious diseases, including Alzheimer's, heart disease, diabetes, leukemia, thalassemia, cancer and multiple myeloma. It could also help patients recover from spinal cord injuries and strokes. UBTH's strict adherence to procedure in this connection is worth acknowledging. The institution officially unveiled the successful breakthrough a few weeks ago, only after the patient crossed the 100-day mark traditionally observed before a hospital could be certified by WHO as having successfully carried out a stem cell transplant.

Stem cell transplant medicine is a 50-year old dream but after a 23-year hunt the immortal mother cell behind the billions of new blood cells humans make every day was at last discovered - confirming the possibility of growing a new blood system for any patient who needs it. Today, the novel technology holds out the promise of improved treatments for many major diseases. However stem cell research is a highly controversial area of life science.

This is mainly due to the use of human embryos, which are one of the sources of stem cells. This has created barriers to the technology in many countries. Nevertheless, medical researchers believe that stem cell treatments have the potential to change the face of human disease and alleviate suffering as was demonstrated in UBTH recently, and other top-notch medical centres all over the world.

Credit must be given to the authorities of UBTH, the medical personnel involved in the stem cell transplant, the Presidency and the federal health authorities and the University of Basel for providing training and collaborative backup for UBTH.

This heart-warming breakthrough dramatically demonstrates that our "Centres of Excellence" can deliver genuine results despite the nightmarish condition of the nation's health sector. This situation which pivots on poor funding, dearth of continuous medical education - especially research and development - and critical equipment must be turned around. We urge government to show more research interest in regenerative medicine, now a dominant trend in Europe and America. It should support UBTH and other medical institutions that are interested in this area of medicine which holds a lot of promise against many life-threatening ailments in the country.

Nigeria must invest in this branch of medicine considering its enormous promise and future applications. In terms of its scope and uncommon potential, perhaps no arena of human endeavour can benefit more from the meaning of President Goodluck Jonathan's transformation agenda than this novel medical technology. Interestingly, the ethical issues earlier associated with stem cell research (it depends on human foetus for cells) are now over. Living persons can provide the cells for the research as demonstrated in UBTH's transplant.

Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201202071230.html/

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