Specialty Services
Heart Transplant Program
Kidney/ Pancreas/ Islet Program
Liver Program
Lung Transplant Program
UW Medical Center's Cardiac Transplant Program was established in 1985. Our survival rates have been excellent and above the national average, with one-year survival averaging 93 percent, and five-year survival, 87 percent. For the past ten years we have had a very active left ventricular assist device program, which provides mechanical support to specific potential cardiac transplant candidates.
To date there have been over 470 cardiac transplants performed at UW Medical Center. We accept candidates with end-stage heart disease up to 65 years of age. We perform between 25 and 30 cardiac transplants per year and maintain a waiting list of approximately 40 patients.
The UW Medical Center's Cardiac Transplant Program emphasizes a multidisciplinary approach throughout all phases of the transplant process. The recipient patient receives lifelong ongoing care from our team.
Edward D. Verrier, M.D., director and chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery, is the surgical director of the cardiac transplant program. Daniel P. Fishbein, M.D., is the medical director of cardiac transplantation.
Physician referrals for cardiac transplantation may be directed to the UW Medical Center Cardiac Transplant Program at 206-598-8181 or via MEDCON 1-800-326-5300.
Return to Top
The first kidney transplant in the Pacific Northwest was performed at the UW Medical Center in 1968. Since then, we have performed approximately 1,000 adult kidney transplants.
We perform kidney-only and kidney-pancreas transplantations, as well as living kidney donor transplants, and a vascular/PD access service for patients with end stage renal disease.
In the most recent survival data released by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), UWMC outcomes for both kidney and pancreas transplantation rated above the national norm to a degree that was statistically significant. That is, the patient and graft survival rates for UW Medical Center were superior when compared to the expected results considering the type of patients referred and transplanted.
The program uses leading-edge technology, such as a National Institutes of Health trial for IVIG to reduce sensitization in highly sensitized dialysis patients awaiting kidney transplantation. It also has had several immunosuppressive drug trials with Neoral, FK506 and Mycophenolate. It is currently involved with a stem cell protocol intended to induce tolerance in its kidney/pancreas patients.
Return to Top
The first adult liver transplant at UW Medical Center was performed in 1990 by Dr. James Perkins, Director of Transplant Services and professor of surgery in the UW School of Medicine. To date, we have performed about 700 adult liver transplants.
In the most recent survival data released by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the UW Medical Center liver graft and patient survival rates continues to be good despite the complex patients that are referred here.
The biggest challenge in transplantation today is the shortage of donor organs. This is most acute for liver transplantation.
A new technique available to increase the number of liver grafts (a "graft" is any organ or portion of organ that is transplanted as organ replacement therapy) is the split-liver graft. A split-liver graft is when one liver is divided into two transplantable grafts, either after it is removed from the donor, or when the organ is still in the donor body, which better preserves the liver for transplantation. Not all donor livers can be split. Donors over age 45 do not tolerate the splitting technique well. In other instances, the anatomy of the donor may not allow splitting. Approximately half of the donor livers offered in our region will be able to be split.
With the split-liver technique, there is an increased risk of surgical complications. One risk is increased bleeding. There are 400 or more tiny blood vessels that need to be tied in this procedure. Splitting also increases the risk of bile leaks. Bleeding and bile leaks should be controllable and only slightly affect long-term function of the graft.
The most concerning risk with the split liver in the increase in vascular (blood vessel) complications and complications with the veins.
A similar technique used for several years is a reduced liver graft. This involves taking one large liver and cutting it down to fit a smaller person, but this results in only one liver graft from one whole liver.
Reduced livers work extremely well. This technique uses only the smaller part of the liver. These results can be compared to those of the living-related grafts, removing a small part of the liver from a family member. Living-related transplantation is usually used in small infants due to the smaller vessels, but the results have been comparable to whole organ transplants in this population.
Return to Top
UW Medical Center's Lung Transplant Program was established in 1991. It is the largest lung transplant program in the Pacific Northwest.
The first lung transplant at UW Medical Center was performed in the spring of 1992. With an average of 12 to15 transplants per year, we have performed 142 lung transplants to date.
Our Lung Transplant Program emphasizes a multidisciplinary team approach throughout all phases of the transplant process which includes involvement from the patient, their family and/or support persons, and their community pulmonary physician. Patients receive ongoing care from the UW Medical Center Lung Transplant Team which includes specialists in pulmonary medicine, thoracic surgery, rehabilitation medicine, nursing, pharmacy, nutrition, social work, laboratory medicine, radiology, and pulmonary diagnostics. Additional consultations are provided as needed from other specialty services.
Return to Top