This week, Santa Casa de Porto Alegre, recognized throughout Brazil for its excellence in organ and tissue transplants, reached a significant milestone with the performance of 750 lung transplants, of which 40 were performed with living donors. Under the leadership of surgeon José Camargo, who is also director of the institution’s Transplant Center, the Lung Transplant Group has accumulated several achievements since its creation in the late 1970s.
According to Camargo, the number of procedures performed with the organ at the institution represents 48% of all lung transplants carried out to date in Brazil. This achievement not only reinforces Santa Casa’s position as a reference on the national scene, but also highlights the dedication and competence of the team who, over the years, have been committed to providing a new chance of life for those facing serious lung diseases. . “More than an extension of the work carried out, this number reveals our commitment to one of the most indispensable virtues for those who work with transplants: availability”, highlights the surgeon.
Despite the significance of the milestone, the director of the Transplant Center reinforces that progress is still needed. “Compared to 2021 and 2022, when we had more deaths on the waiting list than we were able to transplant, the year 2023 was a success, but we still did not reach the levels of 2018, when we performed 52 lung transplants in the year, representing a case per week. We are committed to returning to the best pre-pandemic numbers and this involves constant awareness work”, recalls Camargo.
According to current legislation, the family is solely responsible for the final decision to donate organs, hence the importance of talking about the topic with the closest family members. Visit the #1salva8 website and learn more about organ donation.
Pioneering
In 1989, Santa Casa’s first lung transplant was also the first transplant of its kind in Latin America, a pioneering spirit that made Camargo and the team references in the procedure. Furthermore, the surgeon was responsible for the first living donor lung transplant performed outside the United States, in 1999.
