World's first bladder transplant hailed as 'groundbreaking moment in medical history' - op gives hope to cancer patients
Surgeons in the US have performed a 'miracle' bladder transplant for the first time — giving hope to thousands of patients living with deadly organ failure.
The first ever patient to undergo the groundbreaking operation is Oscar Larrainzar, a 41 year-old from Los Angeles with a rare form of cancer who lost nearly all function of his bladder.
Now, following the successful procedure, he is not only able to use the toilet independently again, but doctors said the surgery also saved his life.
Doctors have hailed the procedure a 'groundbreaking moment in medical history' and 'the realisation of a dream'.
Dr Inderbir Gill, the urologist who performed the transplant, said: 'There is no question: A potential door has been opened for these people that did not exist earlier.
'Transplantation is a lifesaving and life-enhancing treatment option for many conditions affecting major organs, and now the bladder can be added to the list,' he told the New York Times.
Following treatment for tracheal adenocarcinoma, a rare type of bladder cancer, and a surgery to remove the tumour four years ago, Mr Larrainzar had 'been left without much of a bladder at all.'
A normal bladder can hold more than 300 cubic centimeters of fluid. But Mr Larrainzar's could hold 30, according to his medical team.
The patient had also been dialysis-dependent for seven years after both of his kidneys were subsequently removed as part of his cancer treatment.
To address these deficits doctors performed a combined kidney and bladder transplant, allowing the patient to immediately stop dialysis and produce urine for the first time in seven years.
First the kidney, then the bladder, were transplanted. The new kidney was then connected to the new bladder. The entire procedure took approximately eight hours.
'The kidney immediately made a large volume of urine, and the patient's kidney function improved immediately,' Dr Nassiri, who was part of the team of surgeons who performed the procedure, added. 'There was no need for any dialysis after surgery, and the urine drained properly into the new bladder.'
'Despite the complexity of the case, everything went according to plan and the surgery was successful,' said Dr Gill, who is chairman of the urology department at University of Southern California.
'The patient is doing well, and we are satisfied with his clinical progress to date.'
'Of course, this is very, very early. Let's see how everything goes,' Dr Gill cautioned. 'But it's the first time he has been able to pee in seven years. For all of us, this is huge.'
Typically, rather than a transplant, patients with a failing bladder are fitted with what's known as a neobladder—a bag that collects the urine outside the body.
Some patients will have their intestine repurposed by surgeons to enable the organ to pass urine.
Experts say that patients suffer complications up to 80 per cent of the time when the intestine is used to replace the bladder, which Mr Larrainzar had been living with for four years.
They say it can lead to digestive issues, kidney failure and cause deadly bacteria to spread in the body.
'While these surgeries can be effective, they come with many short-and long-term risks that compromise a patient's health such as recurrent infections, compromised kidney function and digestive issues,' said Dr Gill.
'A bladder transplant, on the other hand, delivers a more 'normal' urinary reservoir and may circumvent some of the challenges associated with using the intestine,' said Dr Nassiri.
The doctors plan to perform bladder transplants in four more patients as part of a clinical trial to get a sense of outcomes like bladder capacity before pursuing a larger trial to expand its use.
The biggest risks of organ transplant are the body's potential rejection of the organ and side-effects caused by the immunosuppressive drugs given to prevent organ rejection.
Dr Gill added that the best current candidates are those who've coped with an organ transplant previously, or those who need a combined kidney and bladder transplant.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
an hour ago
- Times
My brother died at 33 — what I wish I'd known
I remember seeing the troubling spark of recognition in the psychologist's eyes when I told her that my late brother, Charlie, had schizophrenia. We were sitting in her office going through a never-ending pile of forms as part of my seven-year-old son Eddie's autism-assessment process, including my family history. 'Did you know,' she asked, 'that autism used to be known as childhood schizophrenia?' I remember the grating rough texture of the chair I was sitting on prickling against the back of my legs and feeling the inside of my stomach flip. We lost my big brother, Charlie, in 2004 when he was 33 and he hadn't had a particularly happy life. He had been diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 18 after a period of psychosis — he had been hearing voices and became convinced that a group of people were out to get him.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Popular children's cough medicine recalled over potentially deadly bacterial infection risk
A popular cough medicine for children has been recalled over a risk of bacterial infection that can be deadly. Little Remedies Honey Cough Syrup was recalled Tuesday over the 'presence' of Bacillus cereus, a type of bacteria that can cause two types of foodborne illnesses, and because of 'loss of shelf-stability,' according to a notice from the medicine makers, Medtech Products Inc. The recall describes the symptoms associated with both foodborne illnesses. One can cause nausea, vomiting and stomach cramps starting one to six hours after consuming contaminated food. The second illness can cause stomach cramps and diarrhea starting 8 to 16 hours after exposure. 'Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term illness, exposure to high levels of foodborne B. cereus can cause death,' the recall notice warned. No serious adverse effects have been reported as of the date of the recall. The recalled cough syrup was sold by retailers throughout the country and online from December 14, 2022, to June 4, 2025. Consumers with the recalled medicine are advised to stop using it immediately and contact their doctor if they experience any symptoms that may be related to the product. The company is also offering a refund of the product.
The Independent
3 hours ago
- The Independent
ChatGPT use linked to cognitive decline, research reveals
Relying on the artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT to help you write an essay could be linked to cognitive decline, a new study reveals. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab studied the impact of ChatGPT on the brain by asking three groups of people to write an essay. One group relied on ChatGPT, one group relied on search engines, and one group had no outside resources at all. The researchers then monitored their brains using electroencephalography, a method which measures electrical activity. The team discovered that those who relied on ChatGPT — also known as a large language model — had the 'weakest' brain connectivity and remembered the least about their essays, highlighting potential concerns about cognitive decline in frequent users. 'Over four months, [large language model] users consistently underperformed at neural, linguistic, and behavioral levels,' the study reads. 'These results raise concerns about the long-term educational implications of [large language model] reliance and underscore the need for deeper inquiry into AI's role in learning.' The study also found that those who didn't use outside resources to write the essays had the 'strongest, most distributed networks.' While ChatGPT is 'efficient and convenient,' those who use it to write essays aren't 'integrat[ing] any of it' into their memory networks, lead author Nataliya Kosmyna told Time Magazine. Kosmyna said she's especially concerned about the impacts of ChatGPT on children whose brains are still developing. 'What really motivated me to put it out now before waiting for a full peer review is that I am afraid in 6-8 months, there will be some policymaker who decides, 'let's do GPT kindergarten,'' Kosmyna said. 'I think that would be absolutely bad and detrimental. Developing brains are at the highest risk.' But others, including President Donald Trump and members of his administration, aren't so worried about the impacts of ChatGPT on developing brains. Trump signed an executive order in April promoting the integration of AI into American schools. 'To ensure the United States remains a global leader in this technological revolution, we must provide our Nation's youth with opportunities to cultivate the skills and understanding necessary to use and create the next generation of AI technology,' the order reads. 'By fostering AI competency, we will equip our students with the foundational knowledge and skills necessary to adapt to and thrive in an increasingly digital society.' Kosmyna said her team is now working on another study comparing the brain activity of software engineers and programmers who use AI with those who don't. 'The results are even worse,' she told Time Magazine.
