* PM visits Surgical Specialty Center to check on health of patient and meet medical team that carried out operation
Qatar's first lung transplant procedure was recently successfully performed on a Qatari lady by a surgical team at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).
The patient, a mother of two, is recovering well from the eight-hour operation and undergoing high-quality medical care, Qatar News Agency reports.
HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani yesterday visited HMC's Surgical Specialty Center to check on the health of the Qatari citizen, who received the lung transplant back in June, and to meet the medical team that carried out the operation.
During the visit, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior congratulated the medical team that carried out the operation. He praised and expressed appreciation for their efforts and expertise in conducting one of the most complex operations, wishing them well and further success in their careers. He also wished the Qatari citizen a full recovery.
HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior was accompanied by HE the Minister of Public Health Dr Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari and a number of ranking officers at HMC.
The HMC surgical team was led by Professor Takahiro Oto, an internationally renowned expert in lung transplantation who joined HMC in 2020 to spearhead the lung transplant programme. Also involved in the complex procedure was a highly skilled multispecialty team of surgeons, physicians, nurses and technical support staff.
HE Dr al-Kuwari said the first lung transplant performed in Qatar is a significant milestone for the country and demonstrated that patients here have access to outstanding levels of specialised care.
"Being able to perform one of the most complicated and challenging surgical procedures like a lung transplant here in Qatar demonstrates the high standards of expertise and state-of-the-art technology our patients receive," she noted.
HE the Minister of Public Health said Qatar's organ donation and transplantation programmes have fairness and equity at their heart and are being lauded and emulated by other countries.
"Qatar is a pioneer in the field of organ donation and transplantation both regionally and internationally and many countries seek to emulate our programmes," HE Dr al-Kuwari said. "Through initiatives such as the Doha International Academy for Organ Donation - an innovative hub for collaborative research, education and training in the field of organ donation - we are also supporting other countries in the development of their own programmes."
Qatar's organ transplant programme offers kidney, liver and now lung transplant surgeries, making HMC one of the most comprehensive transplant centres in the region.
Dr Yousef al-Maslamani, medical director of Hamad General Hospital (HGH) and director of Qatar Center for Organ Transplantation, said the goal of introducing the organ transplant programme at HMC is to provide treatment for everyone who lives in the country and to limit travel abroad to perform organ transplants. In this context, he expressed his happiness with the success of the first lung transplant operation in Qatar.
In a press conference yesterday evening, he noted the great success of such operations at Hamad Medical Corporation and stressed the importance of full co-ordination between the donation and organ transplantation centres in this regard, especially in terms of the speedy arrival of donors to achieve the desired benefit.
For his part, the director of Qatar Organ Donation Center (Hiba) and head of the committee supervising the heart and lung transplant programme at HMC, Dr Riyadh Abdul Sattar, reviewed the efforts made to establish a lung transplant programme in the institution, which he said had been ready since last November for lung transplantation.
He explained that there are now 20 cases in HGH with breathing problems, but pointed out that not everyone who suffers from diseases of this type needs a lung transplant, but after assessing the condition and determining the extent of its actual need for transplantation.
He added that there are three cases for which lung transplants can be performed in the coming months, when donors are available.
For his part, the leader of the lung transplant team at HMC, Prof Oto, discussed the qualifications and requirements of both the donor and the recipient in the field of lung transplantation, which he said is one of the most difficult surgeries.
He reviewed the respiratory diseases that affect the lungs, such as pulmonary blood pressure, fibrosis and pneumonia, and the challenges and risks of this type of operation, including rejection and infections, and the need to preserve the lung from any pollutants until the time of transplantation.
He pointed out that lung transplant operations do not need to match tissues, but it is necessary to ensure that there are no antibodies, pointing out that the continuation of life with one lung depends on the type of lung disease.
A lung transplant is a surgical procedure in which a patient's diseased lungs are replaced with lungs from a donor. These surgeries are performed on people with lung failure when all other treatment options prove to be ineffective. The lung transplant programme at HMC began in November 2019, as part of its quest to create the appropriate environment for the success of the project, planning and mobilising the resources and techniques necessary to achieve success.
The programme is now fully prepared to launch lung transplant operations at Hamad General Hospital.
The patient, a mother of two, is recovering well from the eight-hour operation and undergoing high-quality medical care, Qatar News Agency reports.
HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani yesterday visited HMC's Surgical Specialty Center to check on the health of the Qatari citizen, who received the lung transplant back in June, and to meet the medical team that carried out the operation.
During the visit, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior congratulated the medical team that carried out the operation. He praised and expressed appreciation for their efforts and expertise in conducting one of the most complex operations, wishing them well and further success in their careers. He also wished the Qatari citizen a full recovery.
HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior was accompanied by HE the Minister of Public Health Dr Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari and a number of ranking officers at HMC.
The HMC surgical team was led by Professor Takahiro Oto, an internationally renowned expert in lung transplantation who joined HMC in 2020 to spearhead the lung transplant programme. Also involved in the complex procedure was a highly skilled multispecialty team of surgeons, physicians, nurses and technical support staff.
HE Dr al-Kuwari said the first lung transplant performed in Qatar is a significant milestone for the country and demonstrated that patients here have access to outstanding levels of specialised care.
"Being able to perform one of the most complicated and challenging surgical procedures like a lung transplant here in Qatar demonstrates the high standards of expertise and state-of-the-art technology our patients receive," she noted.
HE the Minister of Public Health said Qatar's organ donation and transplantation programmes have fairness and equity at their heart and are being lauded and emulated by other countries.
"Qatar is a pioneer in the field of organ donation and transplantation both regionally and internationally and many countries seek to emulate our programmes," HE Dr al-Kuwari said. "Through initiatives such as the Doha International Academy for Organ Donation - an innovative hub for collaborative research, education and training in the field of organ donation - we are also supporting other countries in the development of their own programmes."
Qatar's organ transplant programme offers kidney, liver and now lung transplant surgeries, making HMC one of the most comprehensive transplant centres in the region.
Dr Yousef al-Maslamani, medical director of Hamad General Hospital (HGH) and director of Qatar Center for Organ Transplantation, said the goal of introducing the organ transplant programme at HMC is to provide treatment for everyone who lives in the country and to limit travel abroad to perform organ transplants. In this context, he expressed his happiness with the success of the first lung transplant operation in Qatar.
In a press conference yesterday evening, he noted the great success of such operations at Hamad Medical Corporation and stressed the importance of full co-ordination between the donation and organ transplantation centres in this regard, especially in terms of the speedy arrival of donors to achieve the desired benefit.
For his part, the director of Qatar Organ Donation Center (Hiba) and head of the committee supervising the heart and lung transplant programme at HMC, Dr Riyadh Abdul Sattar, reviewed the efforts made to establish a lung transplant programme in the institution, which he said had been ready since last November for lung transplantation.
He explained that there are now 20 cases in HGH with breathing problems, but pointed out that not everyone who suffers from diseases of this type needs a lung transplant, but after assessing the condition and determining the extent of its actual need for transplantation.
He added that there are three cases for which lung transplants can be performed in the coming months, when donors are available.
For his part, the leader of the lung transplant team at HMC, Prof Oto, discussed the qualifications and requirements of both the donor and the recipient in the field of lung transplantation, which he said is one of the most difficult surgeries.
He reviewed the respiratory diseases that affect the lungs, such as pulmonary blood pressure, fibrosis and pneumonia, and the challenges and risks of this type of operation, including rejection and infections, and the need to preserve the lung from any pollutants until the time of transplantation.
He pointed out that lung transplant operations do not need to match tissues, but it is necessary to ensure that there are no antibodies, pointing out that the continuation of life with one lung depends on the type of lung disease.
A lung transplant is a surgical procedure in which a patient's diseased lungs are replaced with lungs from a donor. These surgeries are performed on people with lung failure when all other treatment options prove to be ineffective. The lung transplant programme at HMC began in November 2019, as part of its quest to create the appropriate environment for the success of the project, planning and mobilising the resources and techniques necessary to achieve success.
The programme is now fully prepared to launch lung transplant operations at Hamad General Hospital.
