DALLAS, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Methodist Dallas Medical Center recently made history when it became the first in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex to perform a kidney transplant on an HIV positive patient. The patient, a 40-year old African American male, is healthy, well, and enjoying a life free from dialysis for the first time in six years. The surgery was performed by Dr. Richard Dickerman, with transplant surgeons Dr. Jose Castillo-Lugo, Dr. David Nessar, and Dr. Freda Levy. Dr. Nicholas Bellos was the infectious disease specialist managing the HIV disease and related post-transplant care. "The transplant performed on this HIV patient represents Methodist's total commitment to the transplant effort including liver and pancreas," says Dr. Dickerman. "It requires effort from surgeons, staff, nephrologists and infectious disease specialists to take on a difficult patient population." He adds this effort began as an idea of the late Dr. Karl Brinker, former medical director of transplant services at Methodist, and was brought to fruition under the leadership of Dr. Castillo and Dr. Bellos.
"The main concerns with transplanting HIV patients have to do with drug interactions between the HIV medications and the transplant drugs which have to be managed carefully to prevent rejection and/or toxicities," says Dr. Bellos, MD FIDSA, FACP, an infectious disease specialist on the medical staff at Methodist Health System, adding that Methodist had been working on the protocol for several years. "The benefit for the HIV transplant patient is they can be transplanted and treated locally, rather than having to undergo the transplant in a different location and return to Dallas for follow-up care." Dr. Bellos adds that Methodist has an excellent transplant program for non-HIV impacted patients with a very good success rate.
For the patient, who learned he was HIV positive in 2003, his hope was restored when he received the transplant he thought he would never have. He is back to work and looking forward to returning to school to study Spanish and psychology, and receive his teacher's certificate. "I thought I would suffer with kidney disease and be on dialysis the rest of my life," he says. "All I wanted was some sense of normalcy. Now I have that and much more."
About the Methodist Dallas Transplant Institute
The Transplant Institute at Methodist Dallas Medical Center has performed more than 2,500 transplants since its founding in 1981. The Institute made medical history in 1992 when it performed the world's first successful simultaneous heart-kidney-pancreas transplant. Since that time, Methodist Dallas Medical Center Transplant Center has performed three of the world's five combined simultaneous heart-kidney-pancreas transplants and Texas' first successful laparoscopic nephrectomy. For more information, visit www.methodisthealthsystem.org/transplant.
About Methodist Health System
Guided by the founding principles of life, learning, and compassion, Methodist Health System (Methodist) uses some of the latest medical technology and research to bring quality health care to individuals and families throughout North Texas. Methodist Dallas Medical Center, Methodist Charlton Medical Center, Methodist Mansfield Medical Center, Methodist Richardson Medical Center, Methodist Midlothian Health Center, and Methodist Family Health Centers are part of the nonprofit Methodist Health System, which is affiliated by covenant with the North Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church. Additional information is available at www.methodisthealthsystem.org.
Texas law prohibits hospitals from practicing medicine. The physicians on the Methodist Health System medical staff are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of Methodist Health System
SOURCE Methodist Health System
