Expert Urges Improved Funding For Stem Cell Tech

A haematologist, Prof Sulaiman Akanmu, on Tuesday urged the
Federal Government to support and fund the Haematopoietic Stem Cell
Transplantation Technology to facilitate cancer treatment.

Akanmu, who is the Head, Haematology and Blood Transfusion,
Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), gave the advice in an
interview with newsmen  in Lagos.

He said that stem cell transplantation was a medical
intervention that involved taking or harvesting of tissue from one person of
the same species to another person.

According to him, the treatment being offered to cancer
patients are only aimed at palliating the cancer because the cure can kill the
patient.

“One important advantage of haematopoietic stem cell
transplantation is that it gives opportunity for cancer cure. When anybody is
diagnosed with cancer, we do not usually aim at cure.

“We only aim at palliating the cancer,if because we know, if
we aim at cure, we might cure the cancer, but we get the individual also killed
from the treatment that we are offering.

“ Because the cancer drugs, they kill the cancer cells but
at the same time, they kill what we refer to as haematopoietic stem cells in
the bone marrow that is supposed to be producing the blood cells.

“So, if you kill the cancer cells and you cannot produce the
blood cells, the individual dies.’’

Akanmu said that only few cancer patients in Nigeria could
afford to travel outside the country and pay between N14 million and N15
million for the stem cell transplant.

He said that larger percentage of Nigerians died because
they could not afford to raise such huge amount of money for the medical
procedure.

According to him, there is a need to create awareness about
haematopoietic stem cell transplantation in Nigeria and for government to
support and fund the medical intervention.

“Heamatopoietic Stem
Cell Transplantation now here in Nigeria. We needed support, the political
will, encourage our scientists to keep talking about it, to keep going out
there and perfecting the skills and then, equipping our teaching hospitals with
facilities to be able to easily carry out the procedure.

“And the advantage number one is that we are able to give to
Nigerians what they need. Number two it reduces economic drainage from our
country because the huge amount of money that those people who can afford it
move out of Nigeria to have the procedure done, now they can have it done in
Nigeria at a cheaper rate.

“And of course number three advantage is that those of us in
this area of medical practice will feel more competent, feel happy that in our
chosen career, we are achieving results, it boosts our morale.”