MADISON, Wis. — The UW Health Transplant Center says it recently reached a milestone few transplant centers in the country have reached, transplanting its 12,000th kidney.
It’s a notable accomplishment due to the size of UW Health’s program compared to others that have reached the milestone, according to Dr. Dixon Kaufman, the medical director for the UW Health Transplant Center.
“When you think about the size of our program compared to some on the west coast or the east coast, it’s especially impressive to say we are one of the first in the nation to reach this number of kidney transplants,” Dr. Kaufman said.
UW Health transplanted its first kidney in 1966 and performed its first pediatric kidney transplant a year later. Since then, patients have ranged from less than a year old to more than 80 years old. Today, the Transplant Center includes more than 50 physicians and surgeons, nutritionists, social workers, coordinators, and other team members.
About one-third of the kidneys donated have come from living donors, UW Health said — a reminder to everyone who is eligible to consider becoming an organ donor. Donors can also help others live on after they die.
“We recognize and honor the thousands of organ donors and their families who shared these gifts of life,” Dr. Kaufman said. “Their impact on our families, friends, and communities is immeasurable.”
In addition to transplanting its 12,000th kidney in November, UW Health says it conducted its 3,000th liver transplant and celebrated 40 years of providing pancreas transplants in September.
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