Woman Gets First Tailor-Made Trachea Transplant Without Drugs
by bethany on Nov.19, 2008, under Uncategorized
Claudia Castillo
stem cells, thus eliminating the need for anti-rejection drugs. Performed in June using tissue from the woman’s bone marrow, the procedure raises the prospect of transplanting other organs without drugs to supress the immune system.
“This technique has great promise,” said Dr. Eric Genden, who did a
similar transplant in 2005 at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.
Patients with donated organs run the risk of having those organs be rejected by the body and most patients with donated organs must take immunosuppressants for the rest of their lives.
“The probability this lady will have a rejection is almost zero
percent,” says Dr. Paolo Macchiarini, head of thoracic surgery at the
Hospital Clinic, Barcelona who performed the transplant.
“The patient is enjoying a normal life with no signs of rejection after four months.”
Claudia Castillo sought help after a case of tuberculosis destroyed
part of her trachea.
More information is available from Reuters.
