The official opening ceremony was carried out by President João Lourenço, who toured several areas of the facility, whose name (Dr. Victoria do Espirito Santo Pediatric Hematological Institute) pays tribute to a prominent doctor, professor and researcher of this African nation, who was invited to the activity.

According to Health Minister Silvia Lutucuta, Angola has an increasing number of patients with this kind of pathologies, mainly in pediatric ages, hence the importance of improving early diagnosis, treatment and scientific research.

Annually, the minister reported, the country detects some 12,000 children with sickle cell anemia and around 3,000 with hemophilia, while malignant neoplasms due to hematological causes represent around 30 percent of the total number of malignancies registered in pediatric patients.

The new Pediatric Hematological Institute will offer excellent services and will make possible to perform, for the first time, bone marrow transplants in Angola, which will help reduce the number of patients sent abroad, Lutucuta said.

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