World's 1st Human Bladder Transplant Planned In California

Urologists at the University of Southern California’s Keck Medicine are preparing to perform the world’s first bladder transplant on a human patient.

Photo Insert: USC's Keck Medicine

Part of a newly launched clinical trial, the surgery could be “a historic step in improving lives,” USC Urology’s Executive Director Dr. Inderbir Gill, who is leading the trial, disclosed to New Scientist.

The procedure hasn’t been previously performed in part due to the pelvic area’s complicated vascular structure.

But following years of preparation and in-depth research, Gill and his team have developed a plan to use robotic surgery to complete the technically complex operation, wherein the patient’s diseased bladder will be removed and replaced with a healthy organ from a deceased donor.

The advanced technology relies on “a high-definition, three-dimensional camera to guide a robot to perform surgery using smaller, more precise incisions with more dexterity than is possible using hand-held surgical tools.”

Said Gill: “We could be on the verge of a medical advance that has the potential to revolutionize how we treat terminally compromised bladders.”

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