Esophagus transplantation: Is there a “future”?
Mehmet Emre Yeğin1, Mehmet Mert2, Yiğit Uyanıkgil3, Türker Çavuşoğlu2, Ali Sayan2, Gökhan Köylüoğlu2, Yiğit Özer Tiftikçioğlu1
1Ege Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, Plastik, Rekonstrüktif ve Estetik Cerrahi Anabilim Dalı, İzmir, Türkiye
2Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi Tepecik Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Çocuk Cerrahisi Kliniği, İzmir, Türkiye
3Ege Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi, Histoloji ve Embriyoloji Anabilim Dalı, İzmir, Türkiye
Keywords: Esophagus; reconstruction; transplantation
Abstract
Transplantation of esophagus is a topic that is not deeply examined yet. The literature shows that it is in the stage of animal experiments. The only human recipient of an esophagus transplant is a pediatric patient, who did not have an isolated esophagus but multivisceral organ transplantation. This procedure, which is avoided due to immunosuppressant morbidities, may be encountered in the near future with the discovery of therapeutic alternatives.