Durdans makes a mark in bone marrow stem cell therapy

Durdans Hospital Colombo announces successful adaptation of bone marrow stem cell therapy and application of advanced coronary heart procedures (CTO and Rotablations) in treating complex heart diseases. 
The Hospital announced two successful adaptations of bone marrow stem cell therapy in treating heart failure due to obstructed arteries, a first ever in Sri Lanka. 
The Hospital announced that it had used patients’ own bone marrow derived stem cells to treat heart conditions where traditional interventions were not successful or advisable. Bone marrow derived peripheral stem cell therapy, which uses the restorative and curative powers to replace damaged cells and restore cardiac function is a new medical frontier for those suffering from deadly heart diseases.
“Stem cell therapy can enhance and repair the dying heart muscle and induce new blood vessel formation while reducing immunological damage to the heart. Since 2008, medical researchers have been conducting clinical trials of this new technology for chronic heart disease and it is increasingly being recognized as a way forward in terms of regenerating the failing heart. 
There is evidence to indicate a tendency of new cells to reduce immune mediated damage, increase small blood vessel regeneration and sometimes, integrate into the heart muscle by acquiring its properties,” commented Dr Pandula Athaudaarachchi, Resident Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, who has a PhD and, is a Gates Scholar from University of Cambridge on the subject, was instrumental (along with expert support of consultant hematologists; Dr Mala Tudawe, Dr Ajith Kularatne and Dr Nipunika Senadheera) in this procedure, performed at Durdans Hospital Colombo. 
Durdans Heart Centre conducted its first two successful stem cell treatments on patients whose heart function didn’t improve beyond 25 percent following bypass surgery. The patients’ history of a previous heart attack and delayed treatment had triggered complications such as fluid accumulation in lungs and loss of appetite. However, they safely tolerated the procedures, responded well to the bone marrow stem cell therapy and show signs of improvement, the hospital revealed. 
“Using a patient´s own bone marrow stem cells not only helps to rebuild the fragile and damaged tissue, but also potentially avoids the risk of having the cells rejected. It offers new hope for intractable heart failure, which kills many patients worldwide, sometimes even more than cancers, when other treatments have failed, added Dr Athaudaarachchi.