WIKIMEDIA, RUHRFISCHThomas Manning, 64, of Halifax, Massachusetts, is the first person in the United States to receive a penis transplant, The New York Times (NYT) reported today (May 16). During a 15-hour operation on May 8 and 9, a surgical team led by Curtis Cetrulo Jr. and Dicken Ko of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston successfully grafted an organ from a deceased donor onto the patient, who had his penis removed three years ago because of a rare form of cancer.
“We’re very cautiously optimistic,” Cetrulo, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at MGH, said in a briefing today. If everything goes according to plan, Manning should be able to urinate normally within a few weeks and could recover sexual function in weeks to months, Cetrulo told NYT.
The experimental procedure, known as a genitourinary vascularized composite allograft (GUVCA), was the result of more than three years of research and planning, according to an MGH statement. To prevent rejection of the organ, Manning will likely have to take immune-suppressant drugs for the rest of his life. These medications can have serious side effects, such as an increased risk of cancer or kidney damage, but the patient is aware of these risks, Ko said in the briefing.
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