This heart transplant is associated with a donation of tissue from the thymus. Thanks to this, the 6-month-old child did not receive immunosuppressive drugs to avoid rejection of organ donation. However, these treatments are heavy, so this successful operation has significant potential.
« This might change the face of organ transplantation in the future says Joseph W. Turek, who participated in a one-of-a-kind baby transplant. The child, aged 6 months during the operation, responds to the name of Easton Sinnamon. He is the first person to receive a heart transplant accompanied by an implantation of tissue from the thymus. Both grafts come from the same donor. That’s what has announcement Duke University in the United States on March 7, 2022.
Easton Sinnamon was born with severe heart defects as well as “thymic deficiency” of unknown cause. He was therefore born with a dangerous immune deficiency, which is why the parents decided to opt for this innovative solution: ” It was something that might help him, and if it works, it not only helps him, but it might help thousands of other people too, children who need transplants “, entrusts his mother on the site of Duke and in a video. He received the transplant on August 6, 2021 — and today, on his first birthday, he is doing well.
Joseph Turek and his team, as well as many other laboratories around the world, have been looking for a solution of this kind for transplants for several years. Until now, this line of research was confined to tests – successful – in animals. This is therefore a first in humans. But why would heart transplantation combined with implantation of thymus tissue be so important?
Avoid rejection of the transplanted organ
This operation is unique because of the addition of tissue from the thymus. The thymus is a gland located in the upper chest, just behind the breastbone and between the lungs. It plays a role that is usually important for the immune system: it participates in the production of B lymphocytes and in differentiating between cells that belong to the body and foreign cells that can threaten the body.
In fact, combining a heart transplant with tissue from the thymus might have an advantage: helping the body recognize the new transplanted organ as its own. The risks of a rejection, that is to say that the donor refuses the new organ (which generally leads to a problematic failure), would be reduced. Because of these risks of rejection, patients undergoing transplantation must take immunosuppressive treatments. Such drugs are heavy: they prevent the immune system from working fully, not to mention that they can have serious side effects.
For his part, Easton Sinnamon has not been given immunosuppressive drugs for the moment, thanks to his double transplant. It remains to be seen whether this will work: the doctors will follow him to determine if it is finally necessary to give him this treatment, or not. ” If this approach proves successful — and further validation is being considered — it would mean that transplant recipients would not reject the donated organ, nor would they need to undergo treatment with immunosuppressive drugs to term, which can be highly toxic, especially to the kidneys. This concept of tolerance has always been the holy grail of transplantation, and we are now on the threshold “, details Joseph Turek.
