News - Surgery

New study: Pig kidneys — for the first time — demonstrate “life-sustaining kidney function” in a human

This study, performed in a pre-clinical human model, is the first time xenotransplanted pig kidneys have shown clearance of creatinine and shown a standard immunosuppression regimen may be sufficient.

UAB’s first uterus transplant recipient delivers healthy baby

The baby boy, born in late May 2023, is the first baby born from a uterus transplant outside of a clinical trial and UAB’s first baby from its uterus transplant program.

FDA mandate to limit acetaminophen in acetaminophen-opioid medications is associated with reduced serious liver injury

The federal mandate, which was announced in 2011 and implemented in 2014, limited acetaminophen to 325 milligrams per opioid-acetaminophen combination pill. Acetaminophen is toxic to livers at high doses.

Legacy of Hope to sponsor 2023 Donate Life Rose Parade®, honor donor and xenotransplant recipient Jim Parsons

Jim Parsons, an Alabamian and registered organ donor, helped further donation and xenotransplant when his family donated his body upon death for a groundbreaking scientific study conducted at UAB earlier this year.

Communities of hope: How uterus transplant is creating bonds

UAB has the first program in the United States to offer uterus transplantation outside of a clinical research trial and is one of very few centers in the world accepting new patients.

Xenotransplantation: what it is, why it matters and where it is going

With news about UAB’s first peer-reviewed, published transplant of genetically modified pig kidneys into a brain-dead human individual, there are many questions about what this means for the future of transplant and how this will save countless lives moving forward.

Pig kidneys to humans: next steps for the UAB xenotransplantation program

UAB physicians are working on the next steps to begin compassionate or emergency use of the pig kidneys in living humans. Two major approvals will be required.

Pig-to-human kidney transplant one of many feats for Locke, UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute

From its incompatible kidney transplant program to deceased donor programs, to xenotransplantation, UAB continues to seek ways to help patients who face end-stage renal disease.

Selfless act paves the way for more people to receive lifesaving organs

Jim Parsons’ legacy paves the way for thousands to potentially receive lifesaving organs through UAB’s xenotransplantation program.

UAB announces first clinical-grade transplant of gene-edited pig kidneys into brain-dead human

In the study published in the American Journal of Transplantation, UAB researchers tested the first human preclinical model for transplanting genetically modified pig kidneys into humans.

$100 million in contributions to transform UAB School of Medicine

Record $95 million Heersink lead gift to advance strategic growth and biomedical innovation.

UAB’s HCV+ organ transplant program extends to heart and lung patients

After waiting more than two years, Colin Tucker received a new heart thanks to UAB’s new organ transplant program that uses hepatitis C-positive organs.

Locke secures third R01 grant in four years

Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, is director of the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute and Division of Transplantation. In all, Locke’s three R01 grants have totaled more than $10.5 million.

Killian receives 2021 ATC Young Investigator Award

The American Transplant Congress (ATC) awarded Cozette Killian, M.D. MPH, General Surgery Research Resident and UAB Transplant Epidemiology and Analytics in Medicine (TEAM) lab member, the Young Investigator Award.

UAB honors memory of Arnold Diethelm, pioneering transplant surgeon

Diethelm was chair of the UAB Department of Surgery, and built the UAB transplant program.

Sheikh is one of the first female transplant surgeons from Pakistan

Division of Transplantation Assistant Professor Saulat Sajjad Sheikh, M.B.B.S., is one of the first female transplant surgeons from her originating country, Pakistan.

Porrett joins Division of Transplantation

The Department of Surgery welcomes Paige Porrett, M.D., Ph.D., to the Division of Transplantation as an associate professor of surgery. She will also serve as director of Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Transplantation as well as Clinical & Translational Research at the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute.

Porrett featured in UAB MedCast on Uterine Transplant

Associate Professor of Surgery, Director, VCA Transplantation, UAB CTI and Director of Clinical & Translational Research, UAB CTI Paige Porrett M.D., discusses uterine transplantation. She shares her experience with the procedure, who might be an ideal candidate, and the importance of a multidisciplinary approach for this innovative new procedure.

UAB establishes uterus transplant program

UAB’s uterus transplant program is the first program in the Southeast and fourth in the United States.

Department welcomes Sheikh to the Division of Transplantation

Jul. 1, 2020, the UAB Department of Surgery will welcome Saulat Sajjad Sheikh, M.B.B.S., as an assistant professor in the Division of Transplantation.

Locke awarded R01 to study kidney disease in persons living with HIV

UAB Department of Surgery Associate Professor and Director of the Comprehensive Transplant Institute and Division of Transplantation Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, has received a 5-year R01 grant amounting to approximately $4 million.

Study: Women more likely than men to die waiting for a liver transplant

New evidence for sex disparity in liver transplants suggests a change may be needed in how livers are allocated.

Faculty Mentor Award established in honor of Dr. Deierhoi

Last week, the Department of Surgery family lost a giant in the field of surgery, transplantation and medicine: Dr. Mark Deierhoi.

Kale wins 2020 ATC Travel Reimbursement Grant

UAB Department of Surgery General Surgery Resident Cozette Kale, M.D., MPH, was awarded the American Society of Transplantation’s (AST) Live Donor Community of Practice (LDCOP) Travel Reimbursement Grant for the 2020 American Transplant Congress (ATC).

Anderson, Orandi and Locke recognized at 2020 American Transplant Congress

During the 2020 American Transplant Congress (ATC), a joint meeting of the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS), UAB Department of Surgery Assistant Professors Douglas Anderson, M.D., MS, Babak Orandi, M.D., Ph.D., M.Sc., and Associate Professor Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, were selected as recipients of AST awards or appointed to ASTS committees.

Eckhoff departs UAB for BMIDC

On May 31, 2020 Devin E. Eckhoff, M.D. will officially depart the UAB Department of Surgery after more than 25 years of service. He will join the faculty of the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) as the Transplant Institute director, a professor and the Peter Medawar Endowed Chair of Transplantation.

Hello, goodbye 2020: Abdominal Transplant Fellowship

More than 1,200 interns, residents and fellows train in every medical specialty at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and at regional campuses in Montgomery, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa and Selma.

Good news: Tao board-certified and accredited in bone marrow transplantation

Especially during this tough time, it is important to celebrate the good news in the department. Please join us in congratulating Zhuo Tao, M.D., on becoming board-certified and accredited in bone marrow transplantation through the American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (ASHI).

Cannon joins global team on the editorial board of Transplantation as an associate editor

UAB Department of Surgery Professor Robert Cannon, M.D., FACS has been appointed to the monthly publication Transplantation, the official journal of the Transplantation Society and the International Liver Transplantation Society.

Legacy of Hope receives Alabama Performance Excellence Award

The award honors organizations whose recent innovations result in increased productivity and quality within the organization.

Locke named director of UAB Division of Transplantation

Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, has been named the director of the Division of Transplantation within the Department of Surgery at The University of Alabama at Birmingham.

STREAMS program student receives travel award to attend ASC 2020

UAB medical student Amaris Elston will receive a Student Diversity Travel Award from the Association for Academic Surgery to attend next year’s Academic Surgical Congress.

Eight faculty named ACS fellows at 2019 Clinical Congress

Eight faculty from the UAB Department of Surgery were initiated into the American College of Surgeons as fellows at the ACS 2019 Clinical Congress in San Francisco, California, on Oct. 27. (Photo by Brenessa Lindeman) UAB Department of Surgery faculty, staff and trainees traveled to San Francisco, California, last month for the American College of Surgeons 2019 Clinical Congress, as well as a number of other national society meetings.

Transplant outreach arrives at Huntsville Regional Campus

UAB transplant hepatologists will see patients at the Huntsville Regional Campus once a month to make it more convenient to North Alabama residents.

Locke makes BBJ’s Top 40 Under 40 of the 2010s

UAB transplant surgeon Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, has been named one of “Birmingham’s Top 40 Under 40 of the Decade for the 2010s” by the Birmingham Business Journal. As one of the paper’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2015, Locke was chosen for this year’s list from the nearly 400 other winners who have been included in the annual series over the past 10 years.

Orandi, Spangler named CCTS KL2 Scholars

UAB Department of Surgery faculty members Babak Orandi, M.D., Ph.D., and Emily Spangler, M.D., were recently named two of this year’s UAB Center for Clinical and Translational Science Deep South Mentored Career Development Program Scholars. Dr. Babak Orandi Dr. Emily Spangler The program culminates in lead-author manuscripts and an extramurally funded research grant submission for scholars, including Orandi’s project, “The Role of Bariatric Surgery in Obese Liver Transplant Candidates and Recipients,” and Spangler’s project, “Assessment of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair Imaging Surveillance Practices in Veterans.” The mentored career development – or KL2 award – program at the CCTS is sponsored[…]

Hello, goodbye 2019: Abdominal Transplant Fellowship

More than 1,200 interns, residents and fellows train in every medical specialty at UAB in Birmingham, at our regional campuses in Montgomery, Huntsville and Tuscaloosa, and in our program in Selma. In an ongoing series, the Department of Surgery will feature incoming and outgoing trainees for all UAB Surgery programs. This time, learn about the Division of Transplantation’s Abdominal Transplant Fellowship, as well as its newest trainee, Margaret Romine, M.D., and its most recent graduate, Robert Plews, M.D.

Locke appointed to SCS admissions committee

The Division of Transplantation's Jayme Locke, M.D., MPH, was recently appointed to the Committee on Admissions for the Society of Clinical Surgery.

Full circle kindness: Transplant patients hope to inspire others

What connected two people before pales in comparison to what connects them now.

UAB experts weigh in on Trump’s kidney disease executive order

This executive order could mean positive change in Alabama, which has the third-highest death rate from kidney diseases in the nation.

Living donor navigators are crucial part of organ transplant

Founded in 2017, the navigator program works with both recipients and donors to identify needs and guide each through the process to transplantation and post-transplant.

$17 million grant will explore immune cells in inaccessible tissues of the human body

Tissue-resident B cells likely have important differences that affect autoimmunity and transplant rejection.

City of Birmingham offers paid leave for living organ donors

The city of Birmingham joins UAB and the state of Alabama by providing paid leave for living organ donors.

Kidney Chain “Bridge Donor” author hopes to inspire others through personal story

In 2014, Berwager volunteered to donate one of her kidneys to a friend who was suffering from lupus, and who had kidney failure.

Nation’s longest single-site kidney chain reaches 100

High-tech medicine and human kindness combine in UAB’s ongoing kidney chain, a series of transplant surgeries that have given 101 people a new lease on life.

Locke wins ACTS Distinguished Investigator Award

The Association for Clinical and Translational Science awarded its Distinguished Investigator Award for Translation into Public Benefit and Policy to kidney transplant surgeon, researcher.

Transplant programs more than 8,200 miles apart form key partnership

After providing UAB's School of Medicine with HIV-positive deceased donor transplant protocols, UAB aims to return the favor to Groote Schuur Hospital in South Africa by providing paired exchange transplant training

World record Kidney Chain extends with inspired organ donors

A TEDx Birmingham talk by Jayme Locke inspires an Alabamian to donate altruistically and save more lives.

UAB this Week: Dec. 1

UAB has a new, quick way to learn about what’s happening on campus. Watch "UAB This Week" every Friday morning for the latest stories you need to know.

After 31 years and more than 2,200 transplants, surgical students share the secret of their mentor’s success

Surgeon Mark Deierhoi has performed more than 2,200 kidney transplants in his career and trained hundreds of students who say his patience as a teacher has had a tremendous impact.

UAB nurse and two-time transplant recipient, Team Mountain showcase the power of organ donation with Mount Kilimanjaro climb

UAB nurse Calvin Kennedy climbed some 17,000 feet before torn knee ligaments, avascular necrosis and an intestinal parasite forced the two-time kidney transplant recipient to halt his ascent just 5.5 hours from the summit.

Surgeons perform Alabama’s first liver transplant using a new method for preserving donated livers prior to transplantation

A new clinical trial seeks to determine whether a machine that pumps warm, oxygenated blood in cadaver kidneys can improve quality of the organ prior to transplant.