HEALTH MINISTRY TARGETS 10,000 UNITS OF CORD BLOOD NEXT YEAR

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 (Bernama) -- The Health Ministry is targeting to have
10,000 units of umbilical cord blood by the end of next year as it promises the
treatment of many important disease such as leukaemia and lymphoma.

Minister Liow Tiong Lai said that currently Malaysia had only 3,000 units of
umbilical cord blood in the National Blood Bank.

More cord blood was needed for successful compatibility match-ups between
donor and recipient, he told reporters after opening the Stem Cell Research and
Therapy Seminar at a hospital here Thursday.

"About 70 to 80 leukaemia patients have recovered after undergoing
haemopoietic stem cell transplant from umbilical cord blood compared with using
chemotherapy and other cancer treatments," Liow said.

He also said that the National Transplant Registry 2007 reported that 1,312
haemopoietic stem cell transplants had been performed and registered in the
country and 37 per cent of them were performed in government hospitals.

"Presently we have 12 centres performing haemopoietic stem cell transplants
in the country such as the Paediatric Institute of the Kuala Lumpur Hospital,
Ampang Hospital and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre," Liow added.

He encouraged parents to store umbilical cord blood of their babies either
in government or private hospitals but it would be used for difference purposes.

"The government hospital will use umbilical cord blood depending on
patients' needs, no matter whether the donors and patients are related or not,
while the private hospital will use it only among donors' families or for the
donors themselves," he said.

Since last year, the government has restricted the licensing of private stem
cell companies in the country to only four and these companies collect and store
umbilical cord blood and peripheral blood stems cell for newborns and their
parents.

"They charge an initial fee of up to RM2,800 (US$792) per client and an
annual maintenance fee of RM250 (US$70). Some also charge a deposit of up to
RM800 (US$226)," Liow said.

Earlier he launched the national guidelines for conducting stem cell
research and therapy which were produced in collaboration with the ministry,
academicians and various expertise from both government and private hospitals.

The books published are Guidelines for Stem Cell Research and Therapy,
National Guidelines for Haemopoitic Stem Cell Therapy, National Standards for
Stem Cell Transplantation: Collection, Processing, Storage and Infusion of
Haemopoietic Stem Cell and Therapeutic Cells and National Standards for Cord
Blood Banking and Transplantation.
-- BERNAMA