The Medical City and Rizal Medical Center forge partnership to an enhanced and accessible liver transplantation | Inquirer Business

The Medical City and Rizal Medical Center forge partnership to an enhanced and accessible liver transplantation

/ 09:00 AM January 22, 2025

Liver diseases are a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and in the Philippines, liver diseases—which include hepatitis B, hepatitis C, fatty liver disease, alcohol-associated liver disease, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma—accounted for 27.3 cases per 1000 deaths.  Data gathered between January and September 2023, 1.7 percent of deaths in the Philippines were caused by liver diseases. Despite the alarming statistics, however, liver transplantation in the country is extremely expensive, costing millions of pesos, depending on the hospital or transplant institution and considering pre-transplant tests, surgical fees, hospitalization, post-operative care, and among many other expenses. Some Filipinos with liver disease would rather avail of the procedure in India or nearby Southeast Asian countries, while for most patients, transplantation is seldom an option.

TMC and RMC signed a Memorandum of Agreement to establish the Joint TMC-RMC Liver Transplant Program.

In photo, from left to right: Dr. Ruben G. Kasala, TMC Ortigas EVP & CEO; Dr. Maria Rica M. Lumague, Rizal Medical Center Chief; and Dr. Maria Vanessa H. De Villa, TMC Center for Liver Health and Transplantation Director.

Cognizant of the prevalence of potentially fatal liver diseases affecting the Filipino population and the importance of making a comprehensive treatment armamentarium for liver disease, including liver transplant, accessible in the country, The Medical City (TMC) and Rizal Medical Center (RMC) have officially signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to establish the Joint TMC-RMC Liver Transplant Program recently.

TMC The Medical City liver

Dr. Stuart Bennett, TMC’s President and Group CEO

Held at TMC Ortigas, the said historic public-private partnership (PPP) aims to help patients in need of advanced care without having to leave the country. This collaboration combines TMC’s established expertise in liver transplantation and RMC’s commitment to expanding its hepatobiliary services to develop a comprehensive liver transplant and organ donation program.

TMC The Medical City liver

The Medical City and Rizal Medical Center team, together with the DOH Sec. Teodoro Herbosa.

Headlining the ceremonial handshake and actual MOA signing were Dr. Maria Rica M. Lumague, RMC Medical Center Chief II; Dr. Ryan Ruel Barroso, RMC’s Department of Surgery Vice Chair; Dr. Ruben G. Kasala, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer, TMC Ortigas; Dr. Gregorio S. Martinez Jr., Chief Medical Officer, TMC Ortigas; Dr. Vanessa De Villa, Director, Center for Liver Health and Transplantation, TMC Ortigas; and Dr. Stuart Bennett, President and Group CEO of TMC.

Health Secretary Dr. Teodoro Herbosa delivering his special message during the event.

Gracing the momentous event was Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, MD., a staunch supporter of the PPP.  

“If we must belabor the statistics, liver disease is a big problem. In fact, in my perspective, I have already added Hepatitis B to my priority together with TB, HIV. And my job is to prevent liver disease by making sure everybody gets hepatitis vaccination,” Health Secretary Herbosa shared during his speech.  “This PPP is beneficial to everyone, so maybe we should ask the government about this liver transplant program. Now that you are partners, I’ll push for it. We can even get liver transplant experts in the UK to come here and sit down with your liver transplant experts, and maybe we can learn something from them,” he added. 

TMC’s Center for Liver Health and Transplantation, or simply Liver Center, is one of the country’s leading liver transplantation centers for adult and pediatric patients. Currently, it has an active partnership with the DOH and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) to support pediatric patients needing liver transplants through the Pediatric Access to Liver Transplant (PASLIT) Program.  

Dr. Vanessa De Villa, Director of TMC’s Liver Center, believes that the way to move forward is to join forces with the government because the latter has more resources. She likewise noted that the RMC is the ideal partner because of its strong hepato-pancreato-biliary unit with trained surgeons in liver transplantation.

As a government hospital, RMC has long been dedicated to serving the public with excellence, compassion, and dedication to Filipino’s health and well-being.  “This collaboration signifies a monumental step towards our shared commitment to enhance healthcare services to ensure that life-saving liver transplant services are more accessible to our fellow Filipinos.  This partnership will empower us to expand our capabilities, complementing the expertise and resources of RMC and TMC, where we will harness the strength and expertise of both institutions to provide world-class care,” Dr. Lumague, RMC’s Medical Center Chief II, said. 

Initially, liver transplants will be performed at TMC, with RMC building the necessary infrastructure.  Once completed, procedures will be done at either hospital based on patient preference and resource availability.   There will also be a knowledge and skill transfer from TMC to RMC through combined education, training programs, and research collaboration on liver transplantation.  

For the long term, this collaboration aims to expand the Organ Donation Program to include Pasig City, solidifying TMC’s position as the leading private institution for liver transplantation in the Philippines, continuing to provide advanced expertise and support for complex cases while simultaneously making RMC the preferred government facility for liver transplantation in the country.  This partnership will eventually create a robust and sustainable liver transplant in the country and save countless lives.  

For more information about TMC’s Liver Center, send them a message on Facebook Messenger at m.me/TheMedicalCity.

ADVT.

This article is brought to you by The Medical City.

TAGS: BrandRoom, The Medical City (TMC)

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