Nebraska Medical Center Release: 2,000th Liver Transplant Marks A Milestone

OMAHA, Neb., Aug. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nebraska Medical Center and its partner, the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), have reached a milestone shared by only five other transplant centers in the country by performing more than 2,000 liver transplants.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040811/LAW061LOGO)

"It's an extraordinary milestone," said Alan Langnas, D.O., chief of transplantation at The Nebraska Medical Center and UNMC professor of surgery. "It means so much to all of the people who began the program and those who have worked tirelessly, investing so much time and energy into making this program possible."

"I think the same spirit of enthusiasm for getting the thing started has helped sustain it," said Byers Shaw, Jr. chief of surgery at The Nebraska Medical Center and professor and chairman of the UNMC department of surgery. Dr. Shaw was instrumental in bringing the program to Omaha nearly 20 years ago. "I remember sitting on the plane after a visit thinking, 'this would be a place where you couldn't go wrong in terms of starting something new like this, when so many people are really enthusiastic and are invested in making this work,'" he said.

"It's an incredible thing to think all of the wonderful and heroic patients over the years who have inspired us to keep doing what we're doing and, of course, try to do it better all of the time," Dr. Langnas added. Patients like 2-year-old Cameron Brecka of Staplehurst, Neb. The once healthy toddler was diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a rare type of liver cancer, one day before his second birthday.

"All I could say was 'Oh my!'" said Casey Brecka, Cameron's mother. "We realized that we were dealing with something pretty awful."

Cameron started on chemotherapy, which didn't prove effective against the tumor; and it couldn't be removed surgically because the tumor had grown into the blood vessels of the liver. That left Cameron and the Brecka family in the hands of the liver transplant team.

"It's hard to watch a stranger take your child down a long hallway to the operating room for a liver transplant," Casey said. "But it was easier knowing that a hand-picked, well-trained and experienced transplant surgeon was waiting for him."

That surgeon, Debra Sudan, M.D., knew when she went in to the O.R. that the 2,000th liver transplant would be performed that night. She didn't know which of the three patients it would be.

"It turned out to be Cameron and I was happy for him. He is a very nice little boy and his family is wonderfully supportive and just a pleasure to care for," said Dr. Sudan. "To be No. 2,000 is nice for the family. For our program, I think it shows that we have a lot of experience and when it comes to transplantation you can't have too much experience," Dr. Sudan added.

That experience can be traced back nearly 20 years to the program's first liver transplant, patient Frank Wood. His wife, Hazel, remembers the medical team fondly.

"I am extremely grateful to those who took care of Frank. They allowed us many more happy years together," Hazel said. Frank Wood, transplanted in 1985, passed away from Alzheimer's disease in October 2002 at the age of 71.

"I know Frank would have been very pleased to hear about the 2,000th transplant. He'd be pleased to know how far they've come," said Hazel.

Only five other transplant centers have reached 2,000 liver transplants. They are: UCLA, Pittsburgh, Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Baylor, and Mt. Sinai in New York.

Laurie Williams, R.N., helped care for Frank after he was transplanted. She continues her work with the transplant team and says even after 2,000 patients nothing is routine.

"We may have been a bit more 'nervous' for the first transplant and how everything would fit together and we might now be a bit more adept at anticipating problems and finding solutions, but every patient and family situation is unique and challenging," Williams said. "It's having the ability, knowledge and skill to help preserve life and the caring and thoughtfulness to form unforgettable relationships that keeps us all coming back day after day."

The impact of the transplant team's emotional investment is immeasurable. The economic impact, however, tops a half billion dollars. Since the program first began in July 1985, liver transplantation has brought approximately $578.6 million into the state of Nebraska, including the Omaha metropolitan area.

"Most importantly, having done 2,000 transplants is a tribute to the many donor families that have given the gift of life in their time of tragedy," said Dr. Sudan. "The recipients have no way to repay this gift, but are very grateful that there are so many generous people here in our country."

"I am forever indebted to these people," said Casey Brecka. "I don't even have the words to express how grateful I am. They saved my son's life."

"We are lucky to have brilliant surgeons, extraordinary caseworkers, nurses, psychologists and child specialists who grab on to the challenge of transplant," said Dr. Langnas. "When you really get down to it, it's because we're in Nebraska. Special people live here. I think that it's the Nebraskans and the Nebraskan approach to the world that has allowed us to become what we are -- a world-class transplant center committed to serious medicine and extraordinary care."

With a history dating back to 1869, The Nebraska Medical Center, known for excellence, innovation and quality patient care is listed as one of America's Top Hospitals by US NEWS & WORLD REPORT. As the teaching hospital for the University of Nebraska Medical Center, this 735 licensed bed facility has an international reputation for providing solid organ and bone marrow transplantation services and is well known nationally and regionally for its oncology, neurology and cardiology programs. The Nebraska Medical Center can be found online at http://www.nebraskamed.com/

UNMC is the only public health science center in the state. Its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through its commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC has established itself as one of the country's leading centers in cancer, transplantation biology, bioterrorism preparedness, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, genetics, biomedical technology, opthalmology and arthritis. UNMC's research funding from external sources is now more than $68 million annually.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040811/LAW061LOGOPRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.comNebraska Medical Center

CONTACT: Kelly Grinnell, +1-402-552-2192, kgrinnell@NebraskaMed.com, orTom O'Connor, +1-402-559-4630, toconnor@unmc.edu, both of Nebraska MedicalCenter

Web site: http://www.nebraskamed.com/