Bone Marrow Transplantation Department at the Western Ukrainian Specialized Children's Medical Center in Lviv

More than 200 children in Ukraine need transplants every year. On average, only 60 of them receive it, and they are treated at the National Cancer Institute and OKHMATDYT - the rest have to go abroad. If a transplant from an unrelated donor was needed, the patient was sent abroad. This type of transplantation is extremely expensive and has many risks associated with the transportation of a seriously ill patient. It also takes away precious time from the family for logistical and bureaucratic reasons.

Last year, with the support of the Soleterre and Rosa Pristina foundations, we started construction of a bone marrow transplant unit at the Western Ukrainian Specialized Children's Medical Center in Lviv. This is the largest and most expensive project in the healthcare sector that can make bone marrow transplantation in Ukraine more accessible to hundreds of young patients every year and minimize the risks and costs of the procedure.

In the future department, we have carried out a large-scale construction of transplantation boxes and purchased the most necessary equipment for transplantation - a stem cell separator and a blood plasma thawer. The next step is the cryo-freezing system, the so-called "cryobank". The Foundation's team, together with the hospital staff, has created a training plan in accordance with European standards, according to which a team of doctors conducts monthly training. It is these efforts that will make bone marrow transplantation for children in Lviv a reality in 2022.