Staff at the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were joined by patients and colleagues past and present at a special event today (9 May) to mark 40 years since the first heart transplant at the Freeman Hospital.
Guests came together at Newcastle’s Institute of Transplantation to pay tribute to Pauline Duffy, the first heart transplant patient at the Freeman Hospital, who survived 25 years after her surgery. The event was also a celebration and reflection on the huge advancements that have been made over the last four decades, as well as learning more from colleagues about the future of cardiothoracic transplantation.
The Joint Directors of the Adult and Paediatric Heart and Lung Transplant Programme at the Freeman Hospital, Professor Guy MacGowan, Consultant Cardiologist, and Dr Gerard Meachery, Consultant in Respiratory and Transplant Medicine,welcomed guests to the event. This followed with emotive and inspirational talks by patients, Sanjana Kochher and Dan Ward, as well as many former colleagues who were instrumental in setting up and driving the success of the heart and lung transplant programme in Newcastle.
Sanjana first started experiencing chest pains when she was just 20. She also noticed she was struggling to walk upstairs without getting out of breath. An NHS doctor, she was later diagnosed with heart failure and in 2022 was placed on the urgent transplant list. Sanjana later became the first patient in the UK to receive a donor heart at Newcastle that was transported via a new method, called the XVIVO Heartbox as part of a clinical trial.
Sanjana said: “I was admitted to the Freeman Hospital in a critical condition and urgently listed for a heart transplant. The months I spent as an inpatient were some of the most frightening of my life, but thanks to the kindness and unwavering support of the staff I’m able to reflect on that time with positivity and hope for the future.
“Since my transplant, I’ve returned to work, completed my medical training, and am now working full time as a GP, something I once feared might never be possible. I’ve embraced life with renewed energy, enjoying hiking, yoga, and badminton, and I’m due to be married at the end of this month.
“Thank you to every member of the Institute of Transplantation at the Freeman Hospital. I simply wouldn’t be here without you and words will never be enough to express what you mean to me.”
Other guests at the celebration included Kaylee Davidson who became the first successful and longest surviving baby transplant in Europe after her transplant in 1987, as well as David Yates who had the first adult congenital heart transplant at the Freeman Hospital in 1988 and is the longest surviving adult heart transplant patient in Newcastle.
David, who is now 84 and had his transplant aged 47 back in 1988, said: “For me, the transplant gave me the gift of time – for family, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and friends. Above all, time for living, loving, learning and laughing. To my donor and doctors – thank you.”
Dr. Gerard Meachery, said: “It is wonderful to welcome everyone to the Institute of Transplantation, to mark the 40th anniversary of the first adult heart transplant here at the Freeman Hospital. While it is a time for celebration and reflection of the huge advancements that have been made in organ transplantation, we must also remember and be thankful to the patients who have generously donated their organs to help others live and to also remember their families.”
Since the first adult heart transplant back in 1985, Newcastle Hospitals has carried out over 2,720 cardiothoracic transplants in both adults and children from across the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
There are around 8,000 people in the UK waiting for an organ transplant right now. Around 300 of them, which includes 40 children, need a heart transplant to save their life.
Anthony Clarkson, Director of Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant, says: “It is amazing to think of all the lives that have been saved in 40 years of heart transplantation at Newcastle.
“No lifesaving transplant would be possible without the generosity of an organ donor and their family, giving their support and saying ‘yes’ to organ donation.
“It is testament to these donors and their families, as well as the dedication of all the clinical staff involved, that so many lives have been saved and transformed at Newcastle over the last 40 years.
“We urge everyone to confirm their decision to be an organ donor on the NHS Organ Donor Register and tell their family they want to save lives.”
To join the NHS Organ Donor Register visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk or the NHS app. Share your decision with your family.
