Organ transplantation is the process of surgically transferring a donated organ to someone diagnosed with organ failure. It is the most effective treatment method used in patients with terminal organ failure for whom it is not possible to treat due to various reasons. In Turkey, organ transplantation operations have started gaining widespread acceptance with the first successful kidney transplantation performed in the year 1975.
In modern medicine the organs that can be transplanted today are; the heart, lungs, heart-lungs simultaneously, liver, kidneys, pancreas and intestines. While the success rate of liver, heart and kidney transplant operations is high in Turkey lately pancreas transplants are also being performed.
Organ transplants are fairly common these days, but it wasn't so long ago (1960s) that most transplant patients had very poor chances of survival. Today however, thanks to medical discoveries, drugs and experience, organ transplant patients have a much higher survival rate, thanks to drugs like cyclosporine, which help to reduce rejection and infection. Today, transplants of many major organs, as well as anatomical parts like hands and jaws are almost commonplace. Scientific research and development offers today’s transplant candidates and recipients greater than average survival rates for heart, liver, lung and other vital organ transplants. Even so, researchers are looking into new drugs and treatments (including adult stem cell) to help further reduce chances of rejection and increase survival rates for transplant recipients.