Making history in Georgia: Bone marrow transplants now performed locally

For the first time in Georgia’s history bone marrow transplants can now be performed in the country meaning hundreds of cancer patients will no longer have to travel abroad for life-saving surgery.

Today the new High-tech Outpatient Clinic with a bone marrow transplant centre was opened in Georgia’s capital city Tbilisi by Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili and Minister of Heath David Sergeenko.

The new medical facility is located at the base of Tbilisi’s High Technology Medical Center.

Opening of the new medical facility in Tbilisi. Photo by the PM's press office.

"Today we saw medical equipment that is the most advanced technology of its kind in this sphere,” Kvirikahsvili said at today’s opening ceremony.

"The Universal Healthcare Program, which offers stable funding, made it possible to purchase such high-level equipment.”

The High-tech Outpatient Clinic consisted of an oncohematology and bone marrow transplant centre, a blood bank and radiotherapy department with diagnostics centres. The new clinic will soon have a paediatric department.

The new clinic is equipped with advanced medical technology. Photo by the PM's press office. 

The Prime Minister said Israel was helping train Georgian doctors, and specialists from both nations would jointly carry out pioneering surgeries that had never been done before in Georgia. Among these surgeries were bone marrow transplant procedures.

"[This new clinic] has all necessary conditions meaning from now on we will no longer have to send Georgian patients abroad, and surgeries will be performed by Georgian doctors,” Kvirikashvili said.

The Prime Minister hoped with the advancing state of medical treatment offered in Georgia, more people and more illnesses would be able to be treated locally.

The High Technology Medical Center employed 110 new staff after the new medical centre was added to the complex.