The transplant was performed on Nguyen Thi Lan, a 21-year-old leukemia sufferer, and the donor of blood-forming stem cell was Lan’s sister.

After two-month treatment, Lan has been discharged from hospital in a normal state. Tests no longer find cancer cells and her marrow is reported to be normal.

Bach Quoc Khanh, Deputy Director of the Central Haematology and Blood Transfusion Institute, said that a new method of chemical treatment was used in the transplant to enable the patient to accept cells resistant to cancer. The new method also helps reduce the risk of side effects such as infection and bleeding which can lead to the patient’s death.

The Central Haematology and Blood Transfusion Institute receives nearly 300 patients every day, with 70 percent of them suffering from leukemia.