A team of researchers based in London, Ont. is the first in the world to attempt treating critical COVID-19 patients with a modified form of dialysis, doctors say.
The team at the Lawson Health Research Institute is led by Dr. Chris McIntyre, who while working in the intensive care unit at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), determined more treatment options were needed to fight COVID-19 in the hardest hit patients.
“This led to the idea of treating a patient’s blood outside of the body. We could reprogram white blood cells associated with inflammation to alter the immune response,” said McIntyre.