Ebook: Transplantation Surgery

It is like a fairy story! Or at least a beautiful epic, a truly significant page in the history of medicine, a staggering scene in which several actors come into play, both fundamentalists and clinical practitioners, eager to place all these new developments at the disposal of those suffering from ill health. Everyone is passionate about their work, be it providing new knowledge or perfecting new therapeutic methods. Man has always been fascinated by the possibility of replacing a damaged organ with a healthy one. Several attempts have been made over the centuries, and some miracles have been reported, such as those of Saint Damien and Saint Come as illustrated by Fra Angelico. The modern saga, however, started more modestly on the mouse. It is on the mouse that the first tissue group was discovered; yet the study of human tissue groups could only be carried out on a human. One human must be subjected to the thousands of tests that have enabled us to unravel the extraordinary complexity of the HLA system.

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Transplantation Surgery uniquely covers all aspects of this rapidly expanding field in one volume. The book gives a clear description of the current status of transplant surgery for trainees sitting surgery exit examinations. The book will also be of interest to transplant surgeons, physicians and nephrologists who have an interest in this field. It opens with an introductory chapter on the history of transplantation and the basic science of immunobiology, and then examines the practice of transplantation in each major system. No other book covers the breadth of this topic in a single volume. Each contributor to Transplantation Surgery is an internationally recognised expert. Nadey S Hakim is Consultant Surgeon and Surgical Director of the Transplant Unit based at St Mary's Hospital, London, UK. Gabriel M Danovitch is Medical Director of the Kidney Transplant Program, Center for the Health Sciences, Los Angeles, California, USA. Both have been personally involved in many of the major developments in transplantation. Transplantation Surgery is the first volume to appear with the Springer Specialist Surgery Series (edited by Professor John S P Lumley, St Bartholomew's Hospital, London)