KFSHRC Celebrates 40 Years of Stem Cell Leadership at GHE 2024

King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSHRC) celebrated the 40th anniversary of its Stem Cell Program, a regional leader in bone marrow and stem cell transplantation. Ranked among the top 2% of facilities worldwide for the volume of annual stem cell transplants, the center has successfully performed more than 7,400 transplants, 38% of which were for pediatric patients. This achievement was recognized during the 2024 Global Health Exhibition, according to a news release from KFSHRC.
Over four decades, the Stem Cell Center has become one of the largest globally for bone marrow transplants, as reported by the Center for International Blood & Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) in Wisconsin, USA. The center offers all internationally recognized types of bone marrow transplants, including autologous transplants, matched (syngeneic) and half-matched (haploidentical) donor transplants, and umbilical cord blood transplants. These procedures have successfully treated numerous complex cases, significantly enhancing patients' quality of life.
The KFSHRC Stem Cell Center has been instrumental in founding the Eastern Mediterranean Bone Marrow Transplantation (EMBMT) Group, which promotes and advances research and transplantation programs across the Middle East. The center has published more than 500 research papers and actively supports region-specific research and statistical studies.
KFSHRC's Stem Cell Center was the first medical center outside North America and Europe to receive accreditation from the Joint Accreditation Committee ISCT & EBMT (JACIE) in 2010. Stem cell transplants are used to treat a wide range of diseases, including leukemia, lymphoma, bone marrow failure, severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), sickle cell anemia, thalassemia, and multiple myeloma.
Notably, KFSHRC has been ranked first in the Middle East and Africa and 20th globally in the list of the world's top 250 academic medical centers for the second consecutive year. It has also been recognized as the most valuable healthcare brand in the Kingdom and the Middle East, according to the 2024 Brand Finance rankings. Additionally, in the same year, it was ranked among the world's best 250 hospitals and included in the World's Best Smart Hospitals list for 2025 by *Newsweek* magazine. For more information, visit (http://www.kfshrc.edu.sa) or contact the media team at mediacoverage@kfshrc.edu.sa.