Coal India Limited felicitates CMC for Thalassemia care
Coal India Limited has awarded the Department of Haematology of the Christian Medical College (CMC) in Vellore for its work in thalassemia treatment and care
A release said that the award – as part of the CIL's Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojana (TBSY) programme – was presented by Union Minister of Coal and Mines G. Kishan Reddy to Gomathi Joseph, Senior Social Worker of the department, and her team at a function in New Delhi recently.
The award is titled 'Gift of Life through Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojana', a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of the CIL, and the scheme aims at supporting underprivileged children suffering from thalassemia.
As many as 208 children have undergone life-saving transplants at the CMC under the scheme, to mark the World Thalassemia Day.
Vikram Mathews, Director, CMC, appreciated the efforts of the Haematology Department for securing the award, the release added.
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News18
29-05-2025
- News18
1 Sline Bottle Claims 8 Lives In Tamil Nadu's Tirupattur District: Study
Last Updated: The symptoms of Neuromelioidosis include fever and headache followed by slurred speech, visual distortion and in some cases facial palsy. In a tragic incident, eight people died of neuromelioidosis — a bacterial infection of the brain — that they got from a dental clinic in Vaniyambadi town of Tamil Nadu's Tirupattur district in 2023, a study published in The Lancet has revealed. According to an investigation by a team of doctors from multiple organisations, including CMC Vellore, ICMR-NIE and Tamil Nadu Directorate of Public Health, the outbreak, which hasn't been reported by any government agency, has been linked to unsterile dental practices. The first author of the study, Dr Angel Miraclin Thirugnanakumar of the neurological sciences department at CMC, said that an unsterile surgical instrument called a periosteal elevator was used to open a saline bottle, which was then loosely resealed. The reuse of its contents by the clinic led to at least 10 people contracting the infection and eight of them dying, pegging the fatality rate at 80%. 'The rapid and high fatality may be because the bacteria in the saline travelled directly along nerve pathways when used to clean the patients' mouth during procedures, rather than through the bloodstream, a common route for such infections," the researcher concluded. Whole genome sequencing showed that the bacteria have a gene that aggressively attacks the brain. Neuromelioidosis is a severe central nervous system infection, affecting the brain and spinal cord, caused by the bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei, commonly found in contaminated soil and water in tropical and subtropical areas. The symptoms of Neuromelioidosis include fever and headache followed by slurred speech, visual distortion and in some cases facial palsy. Researchers found 21 neuromelioidosis cases between July 2022 and April 2023, including 10 linked to a dental clinic, resulting in 9 deaths. The fatality rate was 9% among the 11 patients not linked to the clinic. State public health officials praised the study for aiding case identification and informing containment measures. 'We've halted the spread with corrective actions, and this serves as a reminder for healthcare providers to prioritise infection control," said Dr. TS Selvavinayagam, Director of Public Health. On May 9, 2023, CMC reported a surge in neuromelioidosis cases linked to a dental clinic. Four days later, health officials convened a meeting with local healthcare facilities. Co-author Prabu Rajkumar from the ICMR-NIE said that a team of doctors investigated the cluster to describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics and identify the source of infection. 'But before doctors could visit the dental clinic to pick samples, the clinic was disinfected, the water supply was cut off, and the clinic was closed following public outcry," the authors wrote. However, scientists detected B. pseudomallei in a saline bottle sample, while unopened bottles tested negative. Further verification involved testing additional samples and conducting whole-genome sequencing. Analysis showed head and neck involvement, such as inflammation of a salivary gland (parotid gland), inner lining of cheeks (buccal mucosa), along with enlargement or swelling of one or more lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy), was common in cases not linked to the dental clinic. But patients exposed to the dental clinic's contaminated saline progressed rapidly, developing facial cellulitis and soft tissue abscesses, likely due to ingestion of the contaminated solution. First Published:
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Time of India
Brain infection spread from infected saline in a dental clinic in TN killed eight people: Lancet
CHENNAI: Eight people died of neuromelioidosis — a bacterial infection of the brain — that they got from a dental clinic in Vaniyambadi town of Tamil Nadu's Tirupattur district in 2023, a study published in The Lancet has revealed. The outbreak, which hasn't been reported by any govt agency, has been linked to unsterile dental practices, according to an investigation by a team of doctors from multiple organisations including CMC Vellore, ICMR-NIE and Tamil Nadu Directorate of Public Health. The study said an unsterile surgical instrument called a periosteal elevator was used to open a saline bottle, which was then loosely resealed. Reuse of its contents by the clinic led to at least 10 people contracting the infection and eight of them dying, pegging the fatality rate at 80%, said the first author of the study, Dr Angel Miraclin Thirugnanakumar of the neurological sciences department at CMC. 'The rapid and high fatality may be because the bacteria in the saline travelled directly along nerve pathways when used to clean the patients' mouth during procedures, rather than through the bloodstream, a common route for such infections,' the researcher concluded. Whole genome sequencing showed that the bacteria has a gene that aggressively attacks the brain. Neuromelioidosis is a severe infection of the central nervous system, that includes the brain and the spinal cord, caused by bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei which is found in contaminated soil and water in tropical and subtropical regions. Symptoms include fever and headache followed by slurred speech, visual distortion and in some cases facial palsy. Between July 2022 and April 2023, the researchers identified 21 cases of neuromelioidosis (including 10 patients who went to the dental clinic) and total nine deaths. The fatality rate among the remaining 11 patients who didn't go to the dental clinic was 9%. Of the total 21 patients, 17 were in Tirupattur district, two in Ranipet, and one each in Tiruvannamalai and Krishnagiri. The patients who succumbed after their visit to the dental clinic had a quicker death since the infection date. It took 16 days from symptom onset to death and nine days from hospitalisation among patients who went to the clinic compared to 56 and 38 days respectively in case of the lone fatality not linked to the dental clinic. State public health officials said the study would help identify such cases to understand the epidemiology and initiate micro-containment measures. 'We have stopped the spread with corrective measures. It's also a reminder for healthcare providers to be aware of infection control measures,' said director of public health Dr T S Selvavinayagam. On May 9, 2023, CMC notified an increase in neuromelioidosis cases and said some of them were linked to the dental clinic. On May 13, 2023, health officials held a meeting with healthcare facilities and other stakeholders in Tirupattur and neighbouring districts. Soon, a team of doctors investigated the cluster to describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics and identify the source of infection, said co-author Prabu Rajkumar from the ICMR-NIE. 'But before doctors could visit the dental clinic to pick samples, the clinic was disinfected, the water supply was cut off, and the clinic was closed following public outcry,' the authors wrote. However, scientists identified B. pseudomallei from the saline bottle sample. There was no contamination in unopened saline bottles. More samples were tested, and whole genome sequencing was done for further verification. Analysis showed head and neck involvement, such as inflammation of a salivary gland (parotid gland), inner lining of cheeks (buccal mucosa), along with enlargement or swelling of one or more lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy), was common in cases not linked to the dental clinic. But those with dental exposure showed rapid progression, presenting with facial cellulitis and soft tissue abscess, probably because the contaminated saline was ingested.
Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Indian Express
Cancer therapy gets cheaper and effective: CAR T-cells developed in hospital, patients in remission
In a significant breakthrough, CAR T-cell therapy, which uses patients' T-cells to fight cancer by re-engineering them, was developed by and infused at the hospital where they were admitted. Normally, this is done in specialised centres, which pushes up cost and logistics. But with this method, the therapy becomes affordable, costing almost 90 per cent less than the global average. The phase 1 VELCART trial was conducted successfully at Christian Medical College(CMC), Vellore and was funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). 'It is the first trial in the country to do point-of-care development of T-cells in a hospital setting. Once produced, these can be infused to treat patients at a low cost,' says CMC Vellore director and principal study author Dr Vikram Mathews. What were the study findings? Altogether 10 patients, aged between 6 and 59, were selected after other treatments failed to improve their condition. Six of them had acute leukemia and four had lymphoma. They were treated with CAR T-cells developed at CMC Vellore over nine days as part of a point-of-care (PoC) strategy. The study found that the therapy brought about 100 per cent remission in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia patients and 50 per cent remission in large B-cell lymphoma patients. 'Overall, eight of the ten patients remained cancer-free at a median follow-up of 15 months. The therapy was safe, well-tolerated and had minimal side effects,' says Dr Mathews. If successful in Phase II trials across multiple centres, this model can be replicated in tertiary hospitals across the country. How was the therapy developed? Dr Mathews explains that chimeric antigen receptor T-cells (CAR T-cells) are normal T-cells that are part of the patient's own immune system. 'This process usually involves inserting the required genetic information into normal T-cells to produce an antibody receptor that will recognise the antigen/substance on the surface of the cancer cell. This is usually done in large centralised commercial corporations, which contributes to logistic challenges, increased costs, and decreased efficacy,' he says. But produced at the hospital site itself, this could be effective at a lower cost. 'Just imagine if 100 centres could manufacture CAR T-cells at the hospital. Wouldn't it significantly bring down cost in the long run?' he asked. Why is the trial significant? Access to CAR T-cell therapy is limited by cost and turnaround time, even in developed countries. The current centralized model with industry-driven CAR T- cell manufacturing is not viable to the requirements and realities of developing countries like India. Researchers, however, have provided evidence that this is feasible in India. 'The early data from this study establishes its safety and also shows promising results,' says Dr Mathews. Redefining cancer therapies Dr Mathews says researchers used fresh, unfrozen CAR T-cells, which resulted in better outcomes. Unfrozen CAR T-cells are infused directly into the patient after the modification and expansion process, bypassing the freezing step. This approach aims to preserve the cells' fresh, robust state, potentially leading to better anti-tumour activity. This also means that infusion can occur sooner after the cell modification process, potentially shortening the treatment timeline. 'Our trial redefines how cancer therapy can be delivered — efficiently, affordably and close to patients. India is leading the way in developing next-generation, in-house biotherapies with global relevance,' Dr Mathews says. The study, titled 'Safety, efficacy and total cost of point-of-care manufactured anti-CD19 CAR-T cell therapy in India: VELCART trial', has been published in the journal Molecular Therapy. Anuradha Mascarenhas is a journalist with The Indian Express and is based in Pune. A senior editor, Anuradha writes on health, research developments in the field of science and environment and takes keen interest in covering women's issues. With a career spanning over 25 years, Anuradha has also led teams and often coordinated the edition. ... Read More
