Veteran first to get total penis, scrotum transplant

A U.S. military sergeant severely injured several years ago in a bombing in Afghanistan received the world’s first total penis and scrotum transplant, surgeons at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine announced Monday.

The man, whose identity was not released, is recovering well and likely to regain both urinary and sexual function, Richard Redett, who led the transplant team, said Monday in a telephone news conference.

The sergeant did not receive testicles from his donor to avoid the ethics debate that might ensue if he later had children, said Damon Cooney, another transplant team member. The testicles would have contained sperm from the recently deceased donor.

The donor was not identified, nor was his cause of death, but his family released a statement praising the sergeant’s service to his country and noting the donor family includes a number of veterans.

“We are so thankful to say that our loved one would be proud and honored to know he provided such a special gift to you,” said the statement, read by Alexandra Glazier, president and CEO of New England Donor Services, which arranged for the donation. “We hope you can return to better health very soon, and we continue to wish you a speedy recovery.”

Two years ago, surgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital performed a more limited transplant on a penile cancer patient. That patient, Thomas Manning, continues to do well, though the hospital has yet to conduct another penile transplant. There were two earlier successful penile transplants in South Africa, as well as an unsuccessful one in China.

The Johns Hopkins surgery, performed over 14 hours in late March, was the most extensive, involving more tissue than has been previously transplanted, the surgeons said.

In addition to a large skin graft covering part of the sergeant’s abdomen, penis and scrotum, surgeons connected three arteries, four veins and two nerves to provide blood flow and sensation to the donated tissue.

His internal organs were not damaged by the blast.

Redett said he expects the soldier will regain the ability to urinate by the time he leaves the hospital this week. It will take about six months for the nerves to regrow enough to restore sexual function and sensation.

Johns Hopkins covered the cost of the procedure and hopes to complete more, said W.P. Andrew Lee, who directs the hospital’s Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

“Our loved one would be proud and honored to know he provided such a special gift to you.” Statement from donor family

The hospital does not plan to use the procedure for gender reassignment surgery, he said.

The recipient’s body may reject the donated tissue at any time, so he has to be on continuous therapy to tamp down his immune system, said Gerald Brandacher, who handled the immune aspects of the transplant.

To reduce the risk of rejection, the sergeant was infused with bone marrow from the donor. That approach was used in eight other patients who received transplants, such as arms, that were transformative but not lifesaving. Balancing the donor’s bone marrow with the recipient’s allows the patient to take only one low-dose medication a day instead of the three typically taken by transplant patients, Brandacher said.

Injuries that affect sexual and urinary function can be devastating to a person’s identity, self-esteem and intimate relationships, said Lee, whose department has prepared for penile transplantations since 2013.