100th patient gets donated pancreas, UK
The 100th patient to receive a donated pancreas underwent the operation on 7 November at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge - the hospital where the surgery was pioneered in 1979. The landmark operation was on a 43-year-old man suffering from chronic Type 1 diabetes. The operation to transplant a combined kidney and pancreas was straightforward and the patient is recovering.
Pancreas transplants are usually combined with kidney transplants for people with Type 1 diabetes and established renal failure. Together they remove the need both for insulin injections and dialysis, a life-changing event for recipients and their families.
Health Minister Rosie Winterton announced in November 2003 that the number of pancreas transplant operations carried out by the NHS were to be trebled from 54 performed that year to 150 per year by 2009. Pancreatic transplantation became a national specialist service from 1 April 2004.
The achievement of the 100th transplant with seven weeks of a full year still to go means the target looks set to be achieved.
NHS UK Transplant's Medical Director Chris Rudge said: "This is fantastic news for pancreatic transplantation in the UK and shows that we are well on track to achieve the goal of 150 pancreas transplants in a year by 2009 - if not before.
"A combined kidney and pancreas transplant means that for some people not only will dialysis be a thing of the past but the underlying cause will also be cured. It is now a well-established procedure that offers these real benefits to appropriate recipients."
Rosie Winterton said: "I am delighted we are celebrating the 100th person having a pancreas transplant this year. This figure is another milestone in transplant services, but more importantly, it represents 100 people whose lives have been saved or improved through the generosity of another person selflessly donating organs for transplant and highlights the importance of doing so."
Diabetes is a major cause of kidney failure and occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough, or any, insulin. Insulin is responsible for the absorption of glucose (sugars) into the cells to give them energy and into the liver and fat cells for storage. There are two main types of diabetes - Type 1 and Type 2.
Type 1 usually occurs in people under 30. It develops rapidly, destroying the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas and people with the condition have to inject insulin to control their blood glucose levels. Those with Type 1 diabetes are most likely to need a transplant.
At present there are 457 people actively awaiting a transplant as a result of diabetes, of which 347 have Type 1. The remaining 110 patients have Type 2 diabetes, which develops more gradually and is most commonly seen in people over 40.
It has been predicted that the number of people with diabetes will double during the next decade due to increasingly sedentary lifestyles and poor diets.
The diabetic patients are among more than 8,000 people who are currently needing an organ transplant in the UK. A shortage of donors means that under 3,000 transplants are carried out each year and last year over 400 people died while waiting for a suitable donated organ.
There are currently 12.8 million people on the NHS Organ Donor Register - just over 21% of the UK population. People can find out more about transplantation and organ donation by visiting www.uktransplant.org.uk or contacting the Organ Donor Line on 0845 60 60 400.
Seven centres in England receive national designation and funding from NSCAG (National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group) to meet the target for pancreas transplants. These are:
* Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge
* Manchester Royal Infirmary
* Royal Liverpool University Hospital
* The Freeman Hospital, Newcastle
* Churchill Hospital, Oxford
* Guy's Hospital, London
* St Mary's Hospital, London
For further information contact UK Transplant Communications on 0117 975 7477 or Anna Brosnan, at the Department of Health Media Centre on 020 7210 4984.
Did you know?
* 1,790 kidney, pancreas or combined kidney/pancreas or kidney/liver transplants were carried out in the financial year 2004-05. Just over 10% of these (186) were for diabetes. The proportion has risen from 6% in 1994/95.
* 41% of people with diabetes who received a kidney, pancreas or combined kidney/pancreas transplant last year were aged under 40 and 8% were under 30.
* UK Transplant is responsible for maintaining the NHS Organ Donor Register and providing a 24-hour service for the matching and allocation of donated organs. The Government has pledged to increase the number of people on the register to 16 million by 2010.
* UK Transplant is a part of NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). NHSBT is a Special Health Authority within the NHS, responsible for managing the Bio Products Laboratory, National Blood Service and UK Transplant. NHSBT is responsible for optimising the supply of blood, organs, plasma and tissues and raising the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of blood and transplant services.
* The number of patients registered on the active transplant list at 31 March2005 for a pancreas only or simultaneous kidney/pancreas transplant has more than tripled over the ten-year period, from 37 patients in 1995 to 132 patients in 2005.
http://www.uktransplant.org.uk
100th pacientul devine donat pancreasului, Marea Britanie - 100th patient gets donated pancreas, UK - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate