Heart/Kidney/Pancreas Transplant Cures

Holding an MBA along with his MD Magna Cum Laude AOA, Dr. J. A. (John) Macoviak is a retired heart transplant surgeon who practiced for 2 decades beginning in Washington DC ending at Mayo Clinic, disabled by Grave's Disease.. The co-author of several medical papers, he has researched a range of heart-related conditions and focuses these days on becoming a medical blogger and author. John Macoviak, MD, was also the first surgeon to complete a heart transplant along with Hans Sollinger MD and Jimmy Light MD who together performed the simultaneous pancreas transplant, the first combine heart pancreas transplant in 1988. This controversial compassionate pioneering surgery ultimately paved the way for the more complex heart/kidney/pancreas transplants. There is no reason in 2021 why electively combing these two organs in a simultaneous transplant surgery remains controversial as immunosuppression has improved. We are all aware of the risks, but science is about reducing risks going forward. Pioneers are usually strong targets for politics. Then one day things get better.

For example in 2005, one such procedure changed the life of Jim Stavis, a 52-year-oldCalifornia resident who had been battling diabetes since the age of 17. For 35 years, the condition controlled his life. It dictated what he ate and put him at risk for a lifetime of possible kidney disease, amputations, and even blindness.

Despite this, he stayed positive and managed his health best he could to avoid diabetes-related complications. Then, he was presented with the option to get a heart/pancreas/kidney transplant at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Since 1992, only eight patients in the United States have received this type of simultaneous transplant according to reports from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), so Mr. Stavis had a rare opportunity in front of him.

The procedure was done with a heart/kidney transplant first, followed by the pancreas transplant. Following the surgery, Mr. Stavis recovered well and was essentially cured of his diabetes. By the holidays in 2006, he was eating normal food with the rest of his family and was capable of skipping the common inconveniences of managing diabetes, like using an insulin pump.