A man who had suffered burns to over 95 per cent of his body, putting him on the verge of death, was saved by a skin transplant from his identical twin in a world-first operation, French doctors said Thursday.
READ MORE: U.S. boy denied transplant due to father’s probation violation gets new kidney
The 33-year-old man, identified only as Franck, received skin grafted from his brother Eric’s skull, back and thighs.
Receiving a transplant from a genetically identical twin eliminates the risk of seeing the recipient’s body reject “foreign” material from an unrelated donor.
Usually in burn cases, the skin of a deceased donor is used, and the donor skin is typically rejected within weeks.
READ MORE: Minnesota woman meets transplant recipient who received her late husband’s face
That is usually enough time for new skin to start growing or to be harvested from elsewhere on the patient’s body.
Twin-on-twin skin transplants have been done before, but this was the first to cover such a large surface area, said Maurice Mimoun, a surgeon at the Saint-Louis Hospital in Paris, where the procedure was done.
-
![]()
3-year-old Calgary cancer patient doing well following US liver transplant -
![]()
Did you know you can get a tooth transplant? -
![]()
Calgary family to pay $600K for little girl’s liver transplant after Canada’s health system says, ‘No’ -
![]()
Bride gets life-saving kidney transplant days before her wedding -
![]()
Edmonton surgeon performing life-changing knee transplants -
![]()
Kidney transplant surgery livestreamed to raise awareness about kidney disease, organ donation
The previous record for such transplants involved a case where about 68 per cent of the victim’s body was burned.
Franck was admitted to hospital in September last year after being burned in a work accident, and the first graft from his twin was done a week later, followed by about a dozen procedures.
READ MORE: Selena Gomez speaks out in 1st interview since kidney transplant
Four-and-a-half months after his admission, Franck left hospital for a rehabilitation centre.
Today, “he is at home with his partner, he can get on with his activities, his face has healed well,” Mimoun told AFP.
The skin’s epidermis, tough and water-resistant, protects the body from dehydration, injury and infection.
- B.C. to ban drug use in all public places in major overhaul of decriminalization
- Posters promoting ‘Steal From Loblaws Day’ are circulating. How did we get here?
- 3 women diagnosed with HIV after ‘vampire facials’ at unlicensed U.S. spa
- Canadian food banks are on the brink: ‘This is not a sustainable situation’
Comments