Any one had a pancreas transplant, thinking of having one, or have information to share? I’m going next month to the first step in obtaining one, and would appreciate anything people can share.
I used to want one, but its way too expensive for me! Good luck though…
I haven’t even gotten into the dollar figures yet, but from what I gather my insurance is gonna be very helpful.
Hi Jennifer,
The key to the success of any organ transplant is two-fold:
- How good is the match (HLA match)
- How well is the immuno-suppression managed (the anti-rejection drugs)
Immuno-suppression has gotten a lot better these days. Make sure that the transplant team you are dealing with has extensive experience. Talk to post-transplant patients and get their feedback. Most kidney transplant programs have excellent pancreas transplant programs, because they are usually performed together. If you manage your transplant well, you can look forward to an almost-normal life. Best of luck!
Jennifer,
The big concern for someone as young as you are is that you would have to be on those immunosuppressive drugs for life. That can be hard on your body, long term.
There is so much interesting research going on right now with stem cells etc, that it might be worth waiting to see if there might be a possible treatment that doesn’t mean you have to use those drugs forever.
Hi Jenny, I can say from my past experance with one back when they 1st became new I myself didn’t like all the meds I had to take but there is another lady on here who just had a succesful one and told me they were talking about how to split the pancres in the near future. Let me look back threw my commit page and find her name for you
Hey Jenny I was right her 1st name is Becky!!! It’s Becky Whitington. Please talk to her she knows the latest up date on it. She has just had hers done in the last 2 months I think.
My childhood pediatrician got a new pancreas and kidneys many years ago & as far as I know was happy. No more shots.
I wouldn’t want to deal with the anti-rejection medication.
Way to right JB! You take them 4x daily all your life!! If you don’t reject like I did!! After 7 times! The worst one of all for me was the steriods!!! That changed me from being a nice can thak it all gal down to a pure B****!!!
i had one 5 years ago with a new kidney. mine is doing great and no signs od diabetes anylonger. where are you going to go to get on a list?
I’m looking at Univeristy of MD. It’s where I’m from, they did the first one ever, I believe, and my insurance covers them. I’m not worried about antirejections meds, they are getting better with time. And my unit at work is willing to not give me any pts with crazy contagious diseases…
Wowie zowie! As I mentioned before, I’m another transplant recipient (kidney) . Meds are pretty serious. The meds aren’t so bad for what they’ve given me in exchange. Cellcept & prograf (& bactrim) are in the protocol I’m using. With St Barnabas Med Center in NJ, we had initially talked about Pancreas After Kidney.
About a year into the new kidney, I opted out of the pancreas list. I decided that another organ from a different source might complicate the immune system issues. I wanted to keep it simple to help my sister’s donation to me last.