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Soldier who lost 4 limbs has double-arm transplant

poweRob

poweRob

USMC 1988-1996
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How absolutely cool is this. I've heard of hand transplants but whole arms? I had no idea. I'm excited as can be for this vet. I hope it all goes down well so that they can start doing this for all wounded warriors and amputees.



Soldier who lost 4 limbs has double-arm transplant

On Facebook, he describes himself as a "wounded warrior...very wounded."

Brendan Marrocco was the first soldier to survive losing all four limbs in the Iraq War, and doctors revealed Monday that he's received a double-arm transplant.

Those new arms "already move a little," he tweeted a month after the operation.

Marrocco, a 26-year-old New Yorker, was injured by a roadside bomb in 2009. He had the transplant Dec. 18 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, his father said Monday.

Alex Marrocco said his son does not want to talk with reporters until a news conference Tuesday at the hospital, but the younger Marrocco has repeatedly mentioned the transplant on Twitter and posted photos.

"Ohh yeah today has been one month since my surgery and they already move a little," Brendan Marrocco tweeted Jan. 18.

Responding to a tweet from NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski, he wrote: "dude I can't tell you how exciting this is for me. I feel like I finally get to start over."

The infantryman also received bone marrow from the same dead donor who supplied his new arms. That novel approach is aimed at helping his body accept the new limbs with minimal medication to prevent rejection.​
 
This is fascinating. I'm glad he is able to have his quality of life enhanced, but I also find the medical science and the preemptive maneuver against rejection and the need for immune suppressors to also transplant some bone marrow to be very interesting.
 
Awesome if it works. I know a couple people who had to have their own appendages sewn back on and they said it was so excruciatingly painful while the nerves regrew that they would have never done it had they known.
 
Thats pretty cool. And good for him, hope the end result is full use of the transplants.
 
I had no idea this was even possible.

I'd still go for the robot arms, though.
 
Fishstyx said:
Thats pretty cool. And good for him, hope the end result is full use of the transplants.
Click to expand...

In the story they said that one month after the surgery he had some limited movement of his arm. I'm highly optimistic.
 
I give this two thumbs up!
 
In a world where agreement among everyone is rare...this is one of those stories where we all can come together regardless of political affiliation and smile.

What a great story for this vet, and what an astounding step for medical science.
 
poweRob said:
In the story they said that one month after the surgery he had some limited movement of his arm. I'm highly optimistic.
Click to expand...

I was thinking of what it takes to attach all the nerves and what not. Heard on the radio that it was a 13 hour surgery involving four doctors. Thats gotta be some intense work with a high degree of attention to detail. Damn impressive.
 
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