World's first bladder transplant successfully performed in the United States

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), one of two California universities involved in the operation, announced that U.S. surgeons successfully performed a human bladder transplant. This is a world first that represents a turning point for patients with severe urinary disorders.

Oscar Larrainzar, a 41-year-old family man who had been on dialysis for seven years, was the beneficiary.

A statement from UCLA explained that the man had to have a large part of his bladder removed several years ago due to cancer and subsequently had both kidneys removed.

Larrainzar received a bladder and a kidney, both from the same donor, during an approximately eight-hour operation performed in early May at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, California.

"The surgeons first transplanted the kidney, followed by the bladder; they then connected the kidney to the new bladder using the technique they had pioneered," the university said in a statement.

The results are encouraging and almost immediate, explained Dr. Nima Nassiri, one of the surgeons. "The kidney immediately made a large volume of urine, and the patient’s kidney function improved immediately," said Nassiri.

"There was no need for any dialysis after surgery, and the urine drained properly into the new bladder," he added.

This first transplant comes after more than four years of preparation and should be followed by others as part of a clinical trial to assess the benefits and risks of such an operation.