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11 October 2019For the first time in Italy and in Europe a combined transplant of four organs (two lungs, liver and pancreas) was performed on a 47-year-old patient at the Molinette hospital of the Città della Salute of Turin. The intervention was performed on a man transferred a few days ago from the Policlinico of Bari, in the resuscitation of the Molinette hospital, directed by Luca Brazzi.

The patient, suffering from cystic fibrosis, a serious pulmonary pathology and already on the active list for a lung transplant - the hospital reports - was aggravated and support was needed with mechanical ventilation in Bari.

Transferred with a state flight to Turin to perform an emergency lung transplant, the clinical conditions further deteriorated with evidence of severe liver dysfunction. Collegially evaluated by the multidisciplinary team of the Molinette lung and liver transplant, it was decided to proceed with a combined lung-liver-pancreas transplant to treat cystic fibrosis in a radical way.

Last Monday, the man was enrolled in the National Emergency Transplant Program and after a few hours the organs of a young donor who died of head trauma in Piedmont became available.

On the night between Monday and Tuesday a real surgical marathon began, coordinated by the Regional Transplant Center directed by Antonio Amoroso. Two teams left Turin for the removal of the organs that allowed the execution of the exceptional transplant. In the operating theater, the surgical and anesthetic teams of the Lung Transplantation Center directed by Mauro Rinaldi and subsequently of the Liver Transplant Center, directed by Renato Romagnoli, followed in sequence and in perfect synchronism.

The intervention began with the transplantation of the two lungs performed by Massimo Boffini assisted by Paolo Lausi. Subsequently Romagnoli (who had performed two other liver transplants a few hours earlier), assisted by Damiano Patrono and Francesco Tandoi, carried out liver and pancreas transplants.

The operation, which lasted over 15 hours, is technically successful and the patient is now admitted to intensive cardiac surgery for the postoperative course. The function of the transplanted organs is resumed regularly and as soon as possible the patient will be released from resuscitation.

The exceptionality of this last transplant - the note underlines - confirms the important transplantation vocation of the City of Health of Turin and certifies the leadership role of the Transplantation Center of thoracic organs and of the Liver and pancreas transplantation Center in the national and international panorama .