Chapters Transcript Video Cedars-Sinai Patient Receives Rare Triple Organ Transplant This father and son team relished taking walks together something they couldn't do a few months back when valent Sams was suffering from multiple organ failures before I had trouble getting to the car in the morning. Just a struggle walking on most days until Friday when I get the paras and, and that's when they drain the fluid out of the stomach and then I can move around a little better balance. Is a medical rarity. One of just 46 people in the United States to receive a triple organ transplant of the heart, liver and kidney since the procedure was first attempted 35 years ago. If the heart's not working, it can cause uh something called congestive hepatopathy in the liver where the liver starts not to work very well and can cause uh chronic and permanent damage of the liver. And then it can also cause stress on the kidneys as well. The primary event for this patient was the heart disease leading to a downfall of the other organs. Fallon was sick for 10 years and his son v became his primary caretaker. That was basically his personal nurse. I made sure everything was ok, he wasn't missing appointments. Uh make sure his medicines was ok. You know, changing his bags for dialysis to it at the house. But since the beginning, he been like my nurse, my best friend, my brother whole life. Are you very emotional balance was in the hospital when word came of a triple donor match and the hospital had to act quickly to helicopter in the organs and begin transplantation because the organs are all coming from the same donor. We have time constraints and, and we need to get these organs in quickly. So that adds to the complexity of the operation. The first step is the heart transplant, which is actually done in the same technical fashion that a a single heart transplant is done. Me, anatomy, cardio, pulmonary bypass, removal of the old heart suturing in the new heart coming off the bypass circuit. At that point, it, it changes, we leave the heart and the chest open, uh allow the liver team uh to do their anastomosis as well. Then the liver team with the liver anesthesiologist steps up. Now we open the abdomen and take out the liver and put in the new, the new liver and it's a little bit tricky because you've got a fresh heart that's now just starting to work, just starting to, to feed the body and feed the organs. But um it's our job with, with all the support in the team to get that liver in and get it working. And then ultimately, the kidneys transplanted. Overall, this procedure took over 20 hours to complete. There's probably no better case in, in surgery or in medicine that exemplifies the concept of teamwork like a multi organ transplant because literally every team member has to work with every other team member for this team to go. Right. Just two weeks later, Valance was sitting up and counting his blessings. So it was definitely a blessing from God on another level back home, Valance is getting his strength back, trying to eat healthy and carefully taking his medications. He does not require any dialysis and his liver is functioning appropriately. So he should have a complete recovery and return to his normal daily activities. It's a long road ahead, but he and his son are walking it together. Created by
BROADCASTMED