In the recent past, a nurse had to inject a metallic needle into a vein to infuse a cocktail of drugs with the patient lying still and motionless. Such a technique was burdensome and painful, especially for young patients like the children. “It is not customary to speak about it, but we have lost some children undergoing chemotherapy just because there was no access to a vein”...., - Andrey Chalov, the Head of the Resuscitation Department of Zaporozhye Regional Clinical Children’s Hospital says. “When an accident occurs with them and it is necessary for me, as a resuscitation specialist, to have an access to a vein. What can I see?! I can see burnt veins on hands and legs and scars from central catheters having been inserted too often! I am just helpless... It is a nasty feeling...”
Fortunately, medicine is making great progress. Port-catheters made from soft and flexible plastic are injected into a large vein and linked up with a titanium chamber containing a silicone membrane. Both the catheter itself and the chamber (in fact "port") are sutured up under the skin. To set up a dropper the port membrane is fixed in position with a special needle and through this needle solutions can be introduced in any amount for the following 3-5-7 days. When the course of treatment is interrupted and there is nothing to be introduced into the vein, the needle is removed from the port.
The main advantages of port-catheters in comparison with other vein injection techniques are as follows:
1. Lower risks of infection because the port is completely hidden under the skin;
2. The port-catheter is very soft and flexible which causes less damage to the vein walls and reduces the chance of thrombosis;
3. Inserting a needle into the port is a simple and almost painless procedure;
4. The port without a needle inserted is virtually unnoticeable and does not restrict the patient's activity;
5. The patient with the port inserted can easily wash himself\herself between the periods of needle changing. It is not only pleasant, but also very important for a little patient with cancer;
6. One port-catheter can function for more than 5 years. It neither requires special care nor causes extreme inconvenience to the patients.
One Port-catheter POLYSITE® costs around $470. In addition, such ports require special needles POLYPERF® the cost of which ranges from $61 to 100 for a month of intensive care. The government does not finance inserting the ports. It considers that the burnt veins of hands and legs to be an inevitable effect of therapy. And damage to lungs, blood-vessels and nerves in cases where repeated insertions of central catheters has taken place are regarded as unavoidable complications. That is why physicians place their hopes on us or, to be more precise - on you, our dear readers and donors.
Our charity foundation starts the project "Port-catheter - less problems, better results!". Within the framework of this project we plan to provide the children of the oncological haematological department with port-catheters and consumable materials. It will certainly increase the safety, efficiency and comfort of treatment. Unfortunately, it will also increase the costs. That is why we cannot do without your help! Physicians are asking now, for example, to buy 6 ports and needles for them for a month. Even with a discount, our port-catheter project requires around $2,972. Other consumable materials for each inserted port-catheter will cost around an additional $60-100 a month. Our project is certainly not restricted to 6 ports, as new sick children will be admitted to the department. It is desirable to insert the ports at the outset, but not in cases when all the veins are burned and thrombosed.
We hope you will kindly support our "Port-catheter - less problems, better results!" project. Make a present to the children in the form of treatment without chemical burns and risky procedures.
For further information contact the volunteers of “The Happy Child” Foundation
