Orlando man gets fresh start as Shands celebrates 500th lung transplant milestone
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (Jan. 3, 2011)—Shands at the University of Florida recently celebrated a new milestone and gave a patient a fresh lease on life in time for the new year. Orlando resident Bhowani Sharma received a new lung, marking the hospital’s 500th lung transplant since 1994.
Sharma, 68, is enjoying a quick recovery and will leave the hospital tomorrow. His surgery was the hospital’s 29th and final lung transplant of 2010.
"Everything just fell into place," said Bhowani’s wife, Rajcoomarie Sharma. "It’s a real blessing and he’s doing well. When you’re here in the hospital, the transplant team and staff are like family."
Sharma received his first lung transplant in 2008 after suffering from pulmonary fibrosis. He experienced complications, including chronic organ rejection. Fifty percent of transplant recipients experience organ rejection within five years of transplantation.
"It has truly been a team effort to reach this milestone thanks to the efforts of many UF College of Medicine and Shands staff on our multidisciplinary transplant team," said Edward D. Staples, M.D., UF College of Medicine associate professor of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery and surgical director of the lung transplant program.
Maher Baz, M.D., UF College of Medicine professor of medicine and medical director of the lung transplant program added, "Thanks to organ donors and their families, patients like Mr. Sharma are given another chance. It is our privilege to serve transplant patients who receive this gift of life."
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Additional Information:
UF surgeons performed Shands’ first adult lung transplant in 1994. The multidisciplinary team draws on the combined talents and experience of members skilled in pulmonary medicine, thoracic surgery, anesthesia, pathology, radiology, pharmacy, nursing, research coordination, social work, physical therapy, psychology and financial planning.
The Shands at UF Lung Transplant Program’s patient survival rates are 88 percent one year after transplantation and 75 percent three years after transplantation, compared to the national expected survival rates of 77 and 64 percent, respectively. There are currently 53 lung transplant centers in the US.
In August, the state of Florida awarded UF a $1 million grant to establish the Florida Lung Transplant Center, which builds on the already-existing lung transplant program. The grant will help fund research projects focused on problems like chronic rejection, the most common cause of lung transplant patient death.
For more information, visit:
http://lung-transplant.ufl.edu/
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