A girl from China's Xinjiang Province is to undergo eye transplant surgery using tissue taken from her father's eyes, because the deterioration in her condition makes it impossible to use tissue from her own.
The girl, named Adila Azahati, is the first foreign patient to receive treatment in Taiwan on the recommendation of doctors from a volunteer medical service.
Her condition was first diagnosed three years ago by a visiting Taiwanese doctor.
PHOTO: LEE HUNG-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
"Originally, I planned to culture the limbal tissue from her [Adila's] right eye to transplant into her left eye," said Tsai Juei-feng (蔡瑞芳), director of the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (台北長庚醫院, CGMH ) Ophthalmology department, speaking at a press conference.
"But since the condition of her right eye has worsened over the past three years, it would be impossible to treat her with her own limbal tissue."
As an alternative, Tsai said, he would take the healthy tissue from Adila's father today and start culturing it in the laboratory. Tsai will then proceed with the transplant surgery in about two weeks.
Adila was first examined by Tsai three years ago, when he was performing voluntary medical service with the Orbis Flying Eyes Hospital in Urumqi, Xinjiang.
Hinting at the endless hours of cross-strait wrangling that preceeded the operation, Tsai said that it was only thanks to Orbis Flying Eyes Hospital, the Department of Health, CGMH, and various non-government cross-strait associations, including the Straits Exchange Foundation, that Adila has finally been able to travel to Taiwan for the surgery, Tsai said.
Limbal cells are stem cells which, together with corneal and conjunctival stem cells and tear film provide a protective shield over the eye's surface.
"Although using her own tissue would have been preferable, her father's tissue is our best bet -- given the dangers of rejection," said Tsai.
According to Tsai, the operation will have about a 70 percent chance of success using tissue taken from a close relative.
The 19-year-old girl is an ethnic Uighur who arrived in Taiwan with her father on Tuesday.
She suffered the eye damage after receiving chemical burns at the age of four when she fell into a ditch containing lime.
There was no explanation at the press conference of how the lime damaged her eyes or why there was a large quantity of the substance there in the first place.
The tissues in Adila's left eye are so damaged that she's nearly blind and can only discern lights. Her right eye will also be operated on, but what's wrong with it apparently failed to emerge at yesterday's press conference.
"I am really happy to have the chance to receive treatment in Taiwan and I am grateful for what everybody has done for me," Adila told reporters.
Tsai said that if the surgery succeeds, Adila's sight would return in about a month.
The Orbis Flying Eyes Hospital, headquartered in the US, is a global charity which flies volunteer eye specialists to remote areas of the developing world.
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