DOH to review stem cell treatment guidelines

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) will soon review and update the existing guidelines for stem cell treatment.

“We will have to review it and make (updates) to the current practice of stem cell therapy,” Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said in a media forum following the death of a 39-year-old woman who had undergone stem cell therapy.

Among the possible amendments to the guidelines, Herbosa said, are those on accreditation and licensing of stem cell treatment facilities.

Accessibility of stem cell treatment must be ensured, Herbosa said while stressing the importance of standards on safety and sterility.

“The licensing is being implemented for the safety of the clients of that stem cell clinic... stem cell facilities have been mushrooming now that stem cell therapy has become even simpler,” he pointed out.

Under the guidelines issued in 2013, human stem cell and cell-based or cellular therapies shall be performed only in health facilities accredited by the DOH.

Non-hospital-based facilities engaging in human stem cell and cell-based or cellular therapies in the Philippines are required to have linkages with at least one Level 3 hospital licensed by the DOH through a contractual agreement.

The DOH has so far accredited only six medical facilities to perform stem cell therapies.