groundbreaking face transplant after a firefighter was injured on duty, a deceased 26-year-old...

7/24/2019 Groundbreaking Face Transplant After a Firefighter Was Injured on Duty, A Deceased 26-Year-old Cyclist Gave Him

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Groundbreaking face transplant: After afirefighter was injured on duty, a deceased 26-year-old cyclist gave him his life back

Patrick Hardison before the re. (Photos courtesy NYU Langone)

By Ariana Eunung !ha-No"e#ber $%
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fbhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fbhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fbhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/people/ariana-eunjung-chahttp://2.bp.blogspot.com/-P8gPwMjzFkE/VkuJTJ5bqbI/AAAAAAAAHjM/6FWQKzX4-SE/s1600/6007480662360064.pnghttp://www.washingtonpost.com/people/ariana-eunjung-chahttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fbhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fbhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/11/16/nyu-surgeons-announce-most-comprehensive-face-transplant-to-date-on-volunteer-firefighter-photos/?tid=sm_fb


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atrick !ardison was working as a volunteer firefighter in his hometown of "enatobia,#$ miles south of %emphis, when he got a desperate call& A house was in flames, witha woman trapped inside& !ardison arrived on the scene and raced inside, momentsbefore the roof suddenly collapsed& !is helmet was knocked off, and he felt his maskmelting& !e closed his eyes and jumped out the window&

!ardison lost his eyelids, ears, lips and most of his nose, as well as his hair, becauseof that fire& !e also had disfiguring third-degree burns across his entire face, head,neck and upper torso& !is skin was so badly damaged that he was not even able toclose his eyes completely&

'(rom that day on, "ept& ), 2$$*, there was no normal tissue left throughout hisface,' +duardo & odrigue., chair of plastic surgery at /01angone %edical 3enter,said in recounting the first responder4s story&

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&atch "o'unteer reghter Patrick Hardison before and after his *hour*'ong face trans+'ant surgery in August. (Ash'eigh ,o+'in-NYU Langoneedica' !enter)

5n a press conference on %onday, the medical center announced that !ardison, now#* and a father of five, had undergone the world4s most etensive face transplant todate& 7he donor was a young 8%9 cyclist from hio named avid odebaugh, whosefamily donated his liver, kidneys, and both eyes to help other patients& A representative

from iven/0, which works to match donors with recipients in the /ew 0orkmetropolitan area, said his mother didn4t hesitate when asked about the facetransplant and called her son 'a free spirit who loved life&'

odebaugh died in ;uly when he crashed and hit his head while riding in 8rooklyn& !ewas 26 -- virtually the same age as !ardison was when he was injured&
http://nyulangone.org/doctors/1164462867/eduardo-d-rodriguezhttp://nyulangone.org/locations/face-transplant-programhttp://nyulangone.org/doctors/1164462867/eduardo-d-rodriguezhttp://nyulangone.org/locations/face-transplant-program


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avid odebaugh, who donated his face, liver, kidneys and other organs to otherpatients and research, had won several cycling competitions, gaining a loyal followingof fans and admirers in /ew 0ork and across the country in the close-knit 8%9 cyclingcommunity& $ surgeries that involved multiple grafts from his leg to hisface, but he was still very disfigured -- with 'no semblance of normal anatomy,' asodrigue. put it -- and had to hide behind sunglasses and a baseball cap wheneverhe went out& 7alking or eating caused tremendous pain&

A friend at !ardison4s church heard about the work odrigue. had done at the


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1niversity of %aryland %edical 3enter for another man whose face had beendamaged and contacted the surgeon on his behalf& !ardison became a patient ofodrigue.4s while the doctor was at 1%%3 and continued to work with him after hewas recruited to join /01 angone&

7he transplant operation, which took place Aug& *#, was funded by a grant from /01

angone& 7he hospital estimates it cost between ?@)$,$$$ and ?* million&

A firefighter who was badly disfigured in 2$$* is doing well, doctors say&

olunteer firefighter atrick !ardison of "enatobia, %iss&, is shown in these before-and-after photos of his face transplant surgery, which was called the worldBs mostcomprehensive one to date& 5t was performed at /ew 0ork 1niversityBs angone%edical 3enter& /01 angone %edical 3enterCvia euters

5n the 26-hour surgery, odrigue. and a team of more than *$$ doctors, nurses andtechnical assistants were able to give !ardison a new face& 1nlike previous facetransplants, which involved delicately stitching parts of another person4s skin, lips,bones, muscles andCor blood vessels onto a patient, this one involved acomprehensive graft of both the front and back of the head that was described as akind of 'hood&' 5t included the scalp, ears and ear canals, parts of the bone from thechin and cheeks, and an entire nose& "urgeons were also able toreplace !ardison4s eyelids, including the muscles that control blinking&

7he team worked in two groups, in two adjoining operating rooms& ne wasresponsible for procuring the face from the donor along with other organs which wereto help other patients and the second on !ardison&


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"urgeons said encouraging signs were evident even as he was still in surgery:'atrickBs new face, particularly his new lips and ears, were robust with color,indicating circulation had been restored&' "oon the hair on his scalp and face begangrowing back& Dithin a week, he was able to sit up in a chair&

7he hospital said that just three months after the surgery -- a critical period when most

rejections occur -- !ardison is 'doing well and is Euickly returning to his daily routines&'5 am deeply grateful to my donor and his family,F !ardison said in a statement& +venthough 5 did not know who they would be, 5 prayed for them every day, knowing thedifficult decision they would have to make in order to help me& 5 hope they see in methe goodness of their decision&'

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odrigue. said that 'when 5 met atrick and heard his story, 5 knew that 5 had to do all5 could to help him&'

!e said one of the most moving moments for him was when !ardison went out to%acy4s in /ew 0ork after his surgery to buy clothes& (or him it was so remarkable thatno one stared at him& &&& 5t was a very emotional echange for us,F odrigue. said&

7he medical science behind transplants has been progressing at a rapid pace inrecent years& atients have seen miraculousresults with wombtransplants,penistransplants and hand transplants as well astongue transplants&

7he world4s first partial face transplant was performed in 2$$) in (rance on a womanwho lost her lips, cheeks, chin and most of her nose after she was mauled by her dog&7he first full face transplant took place in 2$*$ in "pain& 7he procedures set off afirestorm of ethical debate about whether such risky surgeries should be undertaken toimprove someone4s Euality of life H rather than save it&
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2014/10/03/first-ever-baby-born-from-a-transplanted-womb-is-a-healthy-boy/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/03/13/surgeons-announce-worlds-first-successful-penis-transplant/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2014/10/03/first-ever-baby-born-from-a-transplanted-womb-is-a-healthy-boy/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/03/13/surgeons-announce-worlds-first-successful-penis-transplant/


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2$*2: "urgeon +duardo & odrigue. eplains the etensive full face transplantcompleted on ichard ee /orris, pictured at left, during a news conference in %archat the 1niversity of %aryland %edical 3enter in 8altimore& -year-old ichard ee/orris, who had been disfigured after a gun accident *) years earlier& 7he I6-houroperation involved more than *)$ doctors, nurses and staff members&

7he Dashington ost corresponded with /orrisabout his eperience later that year:

+verything from the scalp to the midline of my neck was replaced,including the jaw bones, teeth, part of my tongue, muscles, andnerves,F said /orris, who has retained his eyesight through the gunaccident and the subseEuent surgeries& 7he days immediately followingthe transplant were promising& /orris was taken off his postoperative

ventilator, and within the first week he was able to shave his face andbrush his teeth& Dhen /orris saw his new face in a mirror for the firsttime, he wrote, the only thing 5 could do was hug r& odrigue.&F

JAfter full face transplant, irginia man comes out of hidingK

5n total, roughly I) patients worldwide have had face transplants& 7he risk ofcomplications, even death, are very high& +ven if the initial surgery, which isenormously complicated and dangerous, goes well, face transplant patients H like
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/after-full-face-transplant-virginia-man-comes-out-of-hiding/2012/12/03/e34611f4-1df1-11e2-b647-bb1668e64058_story.htmlhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/after-full-face-transplant-virginia-man-comes-out-of-hiding/2012/12/03/e34611f4-1df1-11e2-b647-bb1668e64058_story.htmlhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/after-full-face-transplant-virginia-man-comes-out-of-hiding/2012/12/03/e34611f4-1df1-11e2-b647-bb1668e64058_story.htmlhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/after-full-face-transplant-virginia-man-comes-out-of-hiding/2012/12/03/e34611f4-1df1-11e2-b647-bb1668e64058_story.html


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those receiving donor organs like a heart or kidney H face the significant risk thattheir body will reject the foreign part& As a result, many doctors believe these patientswill have to take immunosuppressant drugs their whole lives&

2$*): 3harla /ash chats with a neighbor on the speakerphone in her bedroom at hersecond-story apartment in 8oston& 7he epartment of efense is following /ash4s

progress, after funding her full-face transplant surgery in 2$**&


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2$*I: An employee at a stonemason4s workshop with a face transplant and onlyidentified as 'Gr.egor.'


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2$*I: allas Diens and ;amie /ash pose for pictures after getting married at idglea8aptist 3hurch in (ort Dorth, 7e& in %arch& Diens was the first American to receive afull face transplant after accidentally touching a high voltage wire while on aconstruction job and met /ash at a burn victim support group after /ash had been in a

bad car accident that left her with severe burns throughout her body&


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2$*I: %arinda ighter , underwent the transplant in (ebruary&

groundbreaking face transplant after a firefighter was injured on duty, a deceased 26-year-old...

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