The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Freeport's pioneering stem cell therapy provider is exploring "lots and lots of options" for its future after Hurricane Dorian's devastation forced its continuing closure.

Dr Vincent Burton, president and chief medical officer for the Okyanos Centre for Regenerative Medicine, confirmed to Tribune Business in a brief interview that the company is not currently practicing after the Category Five storm damaged its premises at the First Commercial Centre.

This newspaper has been informed that Nassau and the Dominican Republic were being eyed as alternative locations by Okyanos, but Dr Burton denied that the latter was under consideration, saying that he had not "heard that one".

However, he conceded that it would be a "big" loss for Freeport should Okyanos decide to relocate from the city, given what the company represents for "medical tourism, cutting edge medicine" and economic diversification for the city and wider Bahamian economy.

Dr Burton also indicated that Grand Bahama International Airport was a factor in the stem cell therapy provider's current closure as it is impossible for international patients to fly directly to Freeport until international flights resume.

"We're looking at lots and lots of different options. That's the issue right now," he told Tribune Business of Okyanos's current situation. "We're looking at several options, and don't want to say one way or the other.

"We're closed at the minute. Freeport's airport is closed, and the business location got damaged. We're not practicing at the moment." Dr Burton declined to comment when Tribune Business questioned whether there had been any dispute with its landlord over hurricane repairs, as several sources had suggested.

However, he acknowledged Okyanos' importance to Freeport's economy because of what it represents. "It would be big," he conceded, when asked about the impact if it has to relocate. "It was one of the things that has been good for Freeport, medical tourism, cutting edge medicine."

Okyanos is the first licensed stem cell therapy provider in The Bahamas. It has been treating patients with chronic diseases by using their own stem cells from fat tissue. It opened to patients in October 2014, providing treatment for those with autoimmune, orthopaedic, cardiovascular and neurological conditions.

The company says on its website: "We chose to operate our facility in The Bahamas because it is an ideal location for our mission. It is an English-speaking country with highly educated medical professionals, many trained in the US and Europe.

"The Bahamas is a regulated jurisdiction with a strong focus on safety and commitment to the acceleration of regenerative medicine for patients. As a result, highly effective therapies are available in The Bahamas that are found nowhere else in the Western Hemisphere.

"The National Stem Cell Ethics Committee of The Bahamas regulates and reviews each of our protocols. The Ministry of Health's National Stem Cell Ethics Committee allows and regulates the use of patients' own stem cells in the treatment of certain chronic conditions.

"Through an effective partnership with the Bahamian Regulatory Council and the Ministry of Health, we're able to introduce innovative technologies, reviewed by highly qualified people, requiring hard data to measure the effectiveness of these therapies. Okyanos is proud to be the first cell therapy centre in the country to receive Bahamian government approval."