Ukraine witnesses first-ever successful bone marrow transplant for child with rare disease

For the first time, Ukrainian doctors from Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital performed a bone marrow transplant on a child with a rare disease — osteopetrosis.

The Ministry of Health of Ukraine announced that the little patient's name is Angelina, and she will soon turn five. The girl was diagnosed with marble bone disease (osteopetrosis) a year ago, Rubryka reports.

It is a rare congenital disease, occurring in one child per million, and leads to excessive bone compaction. It leads to impaired function of the senses, neurological disorders, other complications, and progressive disability.

The only radical treatment method that can stop the progression of the disease is the transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells.

"However, no one from the family was a fit for Angelina as a donor. We began to search for compatible cells in the Ukrainian and global bone marrow donor registers. A young man from Poland agreed to become a donor for Angelina," the statement said.

The Ministry of Health said that specialists from Okhmatdyt successfully performed a bone marrow transplant. Today, July 19, Angelina has already been discharged from the hospital.

"The girl is awaiting rehabilitation and recovery after difficult treatment," the doctors noted.

What we know about Okhmatdyt

Okhmatdyt is the largest children's hospital in Ukraine. The facility is located in Kyiv and provides specialized, highly qualified medical care. According to the accreditation results 2008, the hospital confirmed the higher category.

Up to 18,000 children are treated annually in 620 hospital beds. Also, about 20,000 receive emergency care in the hospital's trauma center.

Rubryka reported that the Tabletochky charitable foundation, which takes care of children with cancer, purchased a real-time PCR analysis system for the Molecular Diagnostics Department of the Reference Laboratory of the Ukrainian Reference Center of the Okhmatdyt Hospital at 1,216,000 hryvnias.

The commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Serhii Naiev, said that children have the right to a happy childhood. We must do everything so they grow healthy and comfortable despite the war.