Erste banka donates a chimerism testing device to the KBC Zagreb

Zagreb, 11 March 2016 – Erste&Steiermärkische Bank d.d. (Erste banka) donated a new device for chimerism testing, which is required after a bone marrow or haematopoietic stem cell transplant, to the Clinical Hospital Centre Zagreb (KBC Zagreb). This treatment method replaces sick blood cells with healthy ones, and the Tissue Typing Department of the Clinical Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Transplantation Biology of the KBC Zagreb is the only institution in Croatia that offers it. The donation amounting to somewhat more than HRK 200,000 will allow the Institute to replace its existing device and method, which have been made obsolete by the current scientific and professional attainments, and had to be replaced with the single-nucleotide polymorphism model (SNPs) on the device „Real Time PCR“.

The new methodology will allow the Institute to discover even the smallest numbers of sick cells in the patient’s blood stream and contribute to the increased success of the therapy after a bone marrow transplant by providing earlier diagnosis of a return of the disease and timely introduction of therapeutic procedures. The number of chimerism tests increases every year due to the increasing number of patients who are treated with the transplant method. A bone marrow transplant is a routine and efficient treatment method nowadays that provides the opportunity to cure many inherited and acquired blood conditions.

“Erste banka’s donation is of exceptional importance for all patients who have undergone haematopoietic stem cell transplant treatment, who will now have access to state-of-the-art diagnostic procedures following their surgery. With this valuable donation, Erste banka helped advance the diagnostic procedures at the KCB Zagreb, and the donation is even more valuable because the Tissue Typing Department of the Clinical Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Transplantation Biology of the KBC Zagreb is the only institution in Croatia that provides chimerism testing. This donation thus contributes to the treatment of patients across Croatia. We would like to once again extend our sincere gratitude and appreciation to Erste banka”, Professor Ante Corusic, PhD, acting rehabilitation administrator of the KBC Zagreb, commented on the donation.

“We are particularly proud of the fact that the donation of this device was suggested by our employees when they were given the chance to pick an initiative that the bank would support financially. We believe that the chimerism testing device, in addition to the well-proven expertise and knowledge of our doctors and other medical staff, will contribute to even better quality of post-transplantation treatment and diagnostics. We are very happy to have been able to make our small contribution in this segment”, said Sladjana Jagar, Member of the Management Board of Erste banka.

Chimerism testing is a test performed after as stem cell and bone marrow transplant. In order for a transplant to be successful, the number of the donor’s healthy blood cells in the recipient’s blood has to be measured in regular intervals, and the reoccurrence of the recipient’s cells in the patient’s blood has to be monitored. The Tissue Typing Department of the Clinical Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Transplantation Biology of the KBC Zagreb is the only lab in Croatia that has experts who have the knowledge to perform this complex test and interpret the results. It is also one of the rare labs in Europe with European EFI accreditation. More than 2,000 patients underwent transplantation in more than 30 years.