History of the clinic

The original Department of Pediatric Oncology was established on June 1, 1983 in connection with the necessary centralization of care for children with cancer (the establishment of the clinic was preceded by the Department of Pediatric Oncology - 1974 and the Department of Pediatric Oncology - 1976). Its head became the founder of the field of pediatric oncology in Czechoslovakia, prof. MUDr. Josef Koutecký, DrSc

The improvement of care for children with cancer has been made possible by interdisciplinary cooperation with a number of workplaces not only within the Motol University Hospital, but also at the national and European level.

Significant developments in the clinic were brought about by the changes that took place after November 1989. The public gradually became acquainted with the undignified conditions in which the clinic operated and showed extraordinary hospitality, which created one of the first foundations in the country - the "Nation to Children" Foundation. The funds obtained through it became the basis of modern equipment not only for the clinic, but also for a number of other institutes, clinics and departments cooperating with it.

Another important circumstance of the development of the clinic was the initiation of autologous bone marrow transplantation, resp. hematopoietic progenitor cells thanks to transplantation unit II. children's clinic (1992), the establishment of a flow cytometry laboratory, the clinic's own transplant units (1993) and the commissioning of an apheresis unit (1995).

After considerable efforts by Professor Koutecký and his colleagues, the newly built large pavilion of pediatric oncology was put into operation in 1996. The New Pediatric Oncology Building houses a modern radiotherapy workplace, laboratories and a clinic outpatient clinic.

New knowledge and possibilities (not only equipment, but also international contacts) brought further successes presented by the improvement of treatment results. Between 1996 and 2000, 74% of all admitted and treated patients survived (2003 data). Progress in the treatment of pediatric malignancies was undoubtedly supported by the clinic's long-term cooperation with the Hematology Department II. Motol Children's Clinic (transplantation, laboratory research).

At the end of 2003, the close cooperation between the Department of Pediatric Oncology and the Hematology Department resulted in the newly established joint Clinic of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology. He became her head prof. MUDr. Jan Stary, DrSc.

The Department of Hematology II in Czechoslovakia led the care of pediatric patients with a diagnosis of leukemia and other hematopoietic disorders. Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Motol and the 2nd Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, headed by prof. MUDr. Otto Hrodkem, DrSc.

At the end of the 80s, the clinical and laboratory part of the department was built. The first bone marrow stem cell transplant was performed (20) and both regional and national centralization of rarer types of hematopoietic diseases began. The increase in the level of care provided, the creation of nationwide coordinated studies and strong ties to specialized laboratories are the merits of the current head of our clinic, prof. MUDr. Jan Starý, DrSc.

Pediatric hematology has entered the new century already in the established conditions of the Motol University Hospital, mainly thanks to the cooperation with Department of Clinical Hematology, Transfusion department, Department of Immunology a Department of Biology and Medical Genetics. It has become an important part of the pediatric hematology department Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, led prof. MUDr. Jan Trkou, Ph.D. The main goal of the research is the issue of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The staff of the laboratory established close cooperation with the Laboratory of Flow Cytometry of the Institute of Immunology, Charles University, 2nd Faculty of Medicine within the group CLIP - Childhood Leukemia Investigation Prague. CLIP is currently the main laboratory center of our clinic.

History is a separate chapter transplant units, led prof. MUDr. Petr Sedláček, CSc. The unit was opened in 1989 as the first workplace in what was then Czechoslovakia or The Czechoslovak Republic, which offered a chance to cure children with leukemia who had failed standard treatment. Our doctors gained practical experience in transplant medicine during internships and professional stays abroad at leading workplaces in pediatric hematology in Europe and the USA. The first transplant was performed in November 1989. As the only center in our country, the unit concentrated all pediatric patients indicated for bone marrow transplantation.

The number of transplanted children gradually increased to several dozen patients per year and the demands on the capacity and technical conditions of the ward increased significantly. In 2003, it was put into operation completely modernized new transplant unit, whose equipment corresponds to the world-class transplant centers.

In 2014, the transplant unit celebrates 25th anniversary of its existence - In a quarter of a century, more than 500 transplants from family and unrelated donors from the registry have been performed in more than 450 children. In 2014, 20 years will have passed since the first umbilical cord blood transplant and the first transplant in a child with an immune disorder at our workplace. And what ours looks like transplant unit today?

In the history of our workplace, it is necessary to highlight the long - term clinical and laboratory cooperation with Department of Hematology and Blood Transfusion in the field of immunohematology (MUDr. Kořínková, CSc., RNDr. M. Dobrovolná, MUDr. Písačka), processing of hematopoietic tissue and cryopreservation (MUDr. Kobylka, CSc.) and cytogenetics (prof. Ing. Kyra Michalová, DrSc.). Effective interdisciplinary cooperation significantly contributes to improving treatment outcomes in pediatric patients.

Following the worldwide trend of centralization of care for children with cancer, an end took place at the end of 2004 merger of the Hematology Department II. children's clinics with the Department of Pediatric Oncology, established and maintained from the beginning prof. MUDr. Josef Koutecký, DrSc., in the newly established joint Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, which he headed from the beginning prof. MUDr. Jan Starý, DrSc..