India’s First Amyloid Centre inaugurated at Amrita Hospital, Kochi

Kochi/ 12th May 2023: Amrita Hospital, Kochi, a premier hospital in South Asia, has launched India’s first Center of Excellence for the evaluation and treatment of patients with suspected or established amyloidosis. The Amrita Amyloid Center brings together a dedicated team of experts in various specialties to provide comprehensive care for all forms of systemic amyloidosis, including ATTR, AL, AA, and less common variants.

During the inauguration of the Amrita Amyloid Center at the Amrita Amyloid Symposium, held recently, Dr Ron Witteles, co-director, Stanford Amyloid Centre said, “Amrita Amyloid Centre is a great opportunity to expand the reach of diagnosis and treatment of the disease. The time is now. Amyloidosis is still a very under recognized disease. There are so many new diagnostic modalities, growing therapeutic options, and an explosion of clinical trials. It also has a multidisciplinary nature. In order to be able to deliver the best care, we need to work with different disciplines. The future is very bright as the outcome will continue to improve.”

The establishment of the Amrita Amyloid Center marks a significant milestone in healthcare, as it is the first amyloid center of excellence in India to offer comprehensive investigational and therapeutic facilities, with a mandate to become the fountainhead of amyloid research in the region.

While Amrita Hospital celebrates its 25 years of excellence, Dr Hisham Ahamed, Department of Cardiology, Amrita Hospital, Kochi, observes that the launch is integral as the hospital continues to change the entire dynamic of healthcare delivery in Kerala and at large in India.

“Amyloidosis is not as rare as what it once thought to be in India. As it is a multisystemic disease, patients often fail to get the right diagnosis at the right time. The major advantage of having a focused and dedicated advanced amyloid center of excellence is to have all of the expertise under one cohesive service. Thus, the patients can be treated in a structured and comprehensive way similar to the dedicated Amyloid Centers in Europe and North America. Over the past three years, we have an active amyloid working group which is coordinated by haemato – oncology and cardiology. We have all the components to evaluate an amyloid patient or a suspected amyloid patient with a systematic multi-disciplinary evaluation. The process also involves reliably risk stratifying patients, aided by state-of-the-art investigational tools, which enable delivery of standard of care” he said.

Amyloidosis is a family of diseases caused by the misfolding, aggregation, and accumulation of specific proteins in tissues, resulting in abnormal protein aggregates known as amyloid deposits. In the past fourteen years, approximately 150 people have been diagnosed with amyloidosis in Amrita Hospital. Considering the complexity of the disease, most of the patients receive treatments at the advanced stages. Early and accurate diagnosis, as well as timely intervention, can help achieve better patient outcomes. The Amrita Amyloid Center offers a range of clinical and investigative services, including detailed clinical assessment, comprehensive hematological investigations, advanced cardiac imaging facilities, technetium pyrophosphate scintigraphy, genomic testing, mass spectrometry facilities, chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation, and state-of-the-art research facilities.

“Amrita is now equipped to offer comprehensive investigational and therapeutic facilities along with a mandate to become the fountainhead of amyloid research in the region. We also take an interdisciplinary approach where cardiology and hematology departments function hand-in-hand for the past several years in collaboration with other specialties to give the best care to the patients. Our care pathway is very structural. Hence early detection and timely treatment can be provided,” said Dr. Neeraj Siddharthan, Professor, Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Amrita Hospital, Kochi.

The Amrita Hospital, with its commitment to providing world-class healthcare, has once again set a new standard in patient care with the establishment of the Amrita Amyloid Center.