Israel Active

Plastic surgeons at Israel’s Galilee Medical Center attached a 3D-printed prosthetic ear to a six-year-old boy, born with microtia, to correct his birth defect. Although the ear will never be functional, the landmark operation will reduce pain, prevent future complications and is socially, aesthetically important.

Enlightening article about some of the ground-breaking medical experiments performed by Israeli astronaut Eytan Stibbe aboard the International Space Station. It features the miniaturized, remotely controlled lab on a chip developed by Israel’s SpacePharma (see previously).

After 4 years’ construction, Magen David Adom has opened its new $135 million Marcus National Blood Services Center (see previously). The underground facility doubles current capacity and is shielded from terrorism, rocket attacks, earthquakes, and cyber-attack.

Israel’s Oramed (see previously) has completed enrollment of patients for the Phase 3 trial of its oral insulin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Topline results of the trial are expected early 2023.

Israeli scientists have published a peer-reviewed paper that identifies the dendrites in the brain’s neurons as the learning center of the brain, rather than currently regarded synapses. It could help develop new types of treatments for degenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Israel’s Kochav Meir (Shining Star) field hospital in Ukraine has closed after six weeks, having treated 6,000 patients. The hospital was originally planned to operate for one month. The initial 100 staff (80 doctors & nurses) were then replaced by new staff from Israel’s Sheba Medical Center.

Israel’s RedC Biotech is developing a process for mass-production of red blood cells for transfusions. Working with Accellta, a spin-off startup from Israel’s Technion Institute, they use stem cells from O-negative donors to mass-produce red blood cells for most humans, even without testing.

Six years ago, Israel’s ex-Chief Scientist Dr. Orna Berry was diagnosed with cervical, ovarian, and thyroid cancer with six-months to live. Israeli startup Curesponse used genome sequencing to find her best treatment. Dr Berry is now cancer free and at the age of 72 is Google Cloud’s Director of Technology.

15-year-old MDA volunteer Ido spotted a bus strangely stopped in the middle of the road. He then noticed that the bus driver was clutching his chest. Ido immediately alerted his colleagues who spent 20 minutes administering CPR and 11 defibrillator shocks until the driver regained consciousness.

Medics at Israel’s Kohav Meir field hospital brought Virtual Reality goggles and telehealth devices when they visited a refugee camp for Ukrainians.  They used the VR goggles to diagnose patients remotely. And the goggles also provided relief for the trauma-affected refugee children.