Building blood
At first glance, the Hospital of the Warsaw Academy of Medicine on ulica Banacha leaves much to be desired. It's decidedly not pretty. A lot of people would be surprised to learn that tucked in the unprepossessing building's basement is a pearl of modern medical facilities a blood bank that stores "parent" blood cells for use in bone marrow transplants.
"The bank is set up to assist about 100 marrow transplants a year," said Witold Jedrzejczak, the head of the Hematology and Oncology Clinic at the Academy of Medicine. The clinic, located in the same building as the hospital on ulica Banacha, opened its second blood bank at the beginning of April. It is the most modern facility of its kind in the country and is in compliance with European Union standards.
The first section of the blood "warehouse" the bank of umbilical cord parent blood cells was opened last November. The second, the bank of autologous (derived from the same individual) parent blood cells, opened two weeks ago.
Also housed in the complex on ulica Banacha is a 600-square-meter laboratory, which prepares, stores, and freezes blood samples, Jedrzejczak said. Since blood cells are often cultured before being used in transplants, they first have to be stored for a while in special containers.
"These three containers are blood banks for the umbilical cord parent blood cells," Jedrzejczak said. "The first (container) is for storing parent blood cells in liquid nitrogen." He said the second tank holds liquid nitrogen and the third is reserved for emergencies.
The bank has collected umbilical cord blood, which is believed to contain the greatest source of transplant material, from about 100 infants so far. "Cord blood has the same possibilities for creating new blood as bone marrow," Jedrzejczak said. "The cord is wasted, and it is a real benefit that we can use it."
Jedrzejczak has a great deal of experience in this area of transplants. The first Polish doctor to perform a bone marrow transplant more than 15 years ago, he became the head of the clinic on ulica Banacha in 1993. In his new position, Jedrzejczak faced the tremendous task of developing the oncology and bone marrow transplant programs. It wasn't easy.
For starters, the clinic needed heavy renovations and a state-of-the-art isolation ward for patients suffering from suppressed immune systems. The first stage of the program was realized with the help of people willing to contribute the necessary funds. The Katarzyna Frank-Niemczycka Foundation, for example, donated zl. 600,000 for the complete renovation of the intensive hematological care department and also helped establish the Jose Carreras Center of Marrow Transplants.
"The ward (for marrow transplants) started last September," Jedrzejczak said. "And we have performed 16 transplants so far."
Jedrzejczak said several hundred people wait for marrow transplants each year. "That's a large number and we're able to operate on 10 people per bed each year," he said. "And that's why I would like to open the next center soon."
The average number of transplants is three per month, with each lasting about 30 days, he said. "It takes time for the blood cells to translocate and during that time the patient has to stay in completely sterilized conditions," he said.
Jedrzejczak said there are about five physicians who work with him on marrow transplants. "But I am more of a manager now," he added.
In the end, Jedrzejczak said he has to give credit where it's due for making the marrow transplant program possible. "I was responsible for the money I got from sponsors," he said. "The Polsat Foundation gave zl. 680,000. The Committee for Scientific Research gave zl. 400,000 and Gmina Centrum gave zl. 200,000."
