US Doctors Perform World’s First Skull Scalp Transplant

A team of doctors from the US performed the world's first successful skull-scalp transplant on a 55 year old patient who had earlier developed a large head wound during his cancer treatment.

Austin based software developer James Boysen received a craniofacial tissue transplant at the MD Anderson Cancer Centre and Houston Methodist Hospital on Thursday following a 15 hour surgery. He also received a pancreas and kidney transplant at the Houston Methodist Hospital.

The surgery team was led by Dr Michael Klebuc and while speaking to the media said that the surgery was a complex microvascular procedure.

"We transplanted missing skull bone in the overlying hair bearing scalp - not just that tissue but the nutrient blood vessels that come with it," he said.

"Boysen is showing some early sensation which is quite extraordinary. The other thing that's interesting is that you can actually see him perspire on the scalp now that it's been transplanted," he said.

"This kind of a triple transplantation has never been reported before and to our knowledge no-one has reported just the skull and the scalp as well," Klebuc said.

"He (Boysen) had a series of cancers of the scalp and skull that were treated with various surgeries and radiation that left him with a large wound that was all the way down to his brain," said Jesse Selber, a reconstructive plastic surgeon who was the co-leader of the team that performed the intricate surgery.

Boysen had also received a kidney pancreas transplant back in 1992. The transplant was done to treat his diabetes, which he was diagnosed with since he was 5 years old. Boysen since then has also been taking medications to prevent organ rejection.

However the use of these immune suppression drugs are known to increase cancer risks and he developed a rare type of cancer called leiomyosarcoma.

He had to then go for radiation therapy that resulted in a large wound in his head which could not heal due to the use of these immune suppression drugs. As a result his transplanted organs began to fail.

After the marathon surgery, Boysen said, "I'm amazed at how great I feel and am forever grateful that I have another chance to get back to doing the things I love and be with the people I love."