Bangalore, Dec 12, 2013, DHNS:

Pakistani national Imran Qureshi, 31, had never thought that he would find a cure for his ailment across the border. Thanks to the doctors of a private hospital in Bangalore, he is now almost on the path of recovery, ready to reunite with his family.

The Karachi-based businessman was treated successfully for advanced avascular necrosis for the hip through stem cell therapy recently. Having gone around the globe to various countries including the United States in a bid to avoid the surgical procedure, Qureshi landed in Bangalore about a month ago.

Avascular necrosis is a medical condition wherein there is cellular death of bone components due to interruption of blood supply. Without blood, the bone tissue dies and the bone collapses.The condition leads to severe pain in the hip joints, often leading to difficulty in walking in acute cases. He had developed pain in his hip two years ago.

I was devastated when I found out about my medical condition. The sad part was that the most common causes which lead to avascular necrosis of hip are alcoholism, steroid usage and chemotherapy. I had none of these and yet was diagnosed with this, he told reporters here on Thursday. Usually you tend to believe that such conditions only occur to people who are old.

But then this just made me realise that it can happen to anyone. I never considered India as an option. After months of rigorous research, I also had discussions with people who underwent treatment in India. I definitely made more sense to go for a stem cell therapy rather than getting my bones removed or replaced, he added.

The idea is to give much more importance to ones own stem cells than other treatments. The patient needs to be admitted only for one day for each injection. With proper treatment, most people with avascular necrosis can lead productive lives, said Dr Nagaraj, Chairman and Managing Director, LIVE 100 Hospital where Qureshi was treated.

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Pakistani finds stem cell cure in City hospital