Airline refuses to transport stem cells
Ferry Online Travel News 27/11/2008
A transplant procedure nearly didn’t happen when a budget airline refused to transport needed stem cells.
Although the stem cells eventually reached their destination, the delay in transport nearly jeopardized the operation, according to reports in the British press.
In June, a windpipe transplant operation was carried out in Barcelona, and was the first of its kind in the world. The stem cells, grown in a Bristol, England laboratory, were needed for the procedure.
A 16-hour window existed for the transport of the cells from England to Spain, and the transplant team needed to make the journey to Barcelona as rapidly as possible. Despite the importance of the operation – particularly to the 30-year transplant recipient – the team decided to economise and fly on low-cost carrier easyJet.
Professor Martin Birchall, a lead project researcher, said that he had spoken with airline staff a number of times and was assured the cells could be carried onto the flight.
When he arrived at the Bristol airport, easyJet staff told him, however, that the fluid in the cell package was a security risk, as the volume exceeded 100ml.
When CNN contacted easyJet, the airline said it had no record of a request to transplant the stem cells on the Barcelona flight.
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