Bhubaneswar: SCB Medical College and Hospital in Kataka has facilities for storing stem cells and donated bones, while MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Brahmapur operates an eye bank for storing corneal tissues from deceased donors, Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Mukesh Mahaling said in the state assembly on Monday.
In a written reply to a question by Chitrakonda MLA Mangu Khilla, Mahaling said specialised storage facilities for human body parts and tissues are available at selected government medical institutions in the state.
At SCB Medical College and Hospital, the Department of Clinical Haematology has a liquid nitrogen storage facility in its Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) unit for preserving stem cells and cord blood, he said.
The Department of Orthopaedics at SCB also operates a Bone Bank, where voluntarily donated excised bones, including femoral heads, distal femur and proximal tibia, are stored for use in reconstructive surgeries, the minister said.
The Department of Anatomy at SCB has facilities for storing whole deceased human bodies, he added.
At MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Brahmapur, a dedicated Eye Bank under the Department of Ophthalmology facilitates the collection and storage of eyeballs and corneal tissues from deceased donors, Mahaling said.
He said the storage and transplantation activities are regulated by the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (SOTTO).
The procedures and functional guidelines are governed by the regulatory framework established by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA), the minister said.
The minister also said that illegal retrieval, storage or commercial trade of human organs and tissues is punishable under the provisions of THOTA.
Violations by government officials, private entities or individuals can attract imprisonment and financial penalties, besides possible revocation of institutional licences or professional registration, he said.
