heart transplant

Team members visiting Vanderbilt from the Philippine Heart Center included (front row, from left) Melissa Morala-Caranto, MD, Apreel Marie Noble, MD, Avenilo L. Aventura Jr., MD, Emily Aventura, MD, Carina Dipasupil, MD, Liberty Yaneza, MD, Christopher Cheng, MD, (back row, from left) Christopher Ian Joseph De Guzman, RN, Ryan Andal, MD, Dennis de Asis, MD, Karl Derrick Sia, MD, Liza Santiago, RN, Earvin Jon Abaño, RN, and Edgar Tuazon, MD. (photo by Susan Urmy)

Team from the Philippines visits to observe heart and lung transplant programs

The delegation is planning to establish a new heart transplant program in the Philippines, serving a population of 115 million people.

Gatlin Winter was in the hospital recovering from a heart transplant. His wife Ashlynn was in labor with their first baby. Could he get to her side?

With the help of the team from Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, yes he could.

Heart transplant patient Scot Pollard and his wife, Dawn. (photo by Donn Jones)

Scot Pollard’s journey took him from the NBA to the heart transplant waitlist

At 6 feet, 11 inches, he played in the NBA for 11 years on five different teams before retiring in 2008 and never had any heart issues that slowed him down.

Martin Montenovo, MD, left, and Wali Johnson, MD, perform a liver transplant in 2024. (photo by Erin O. Smith)

Vanderbilt Transplant Center reaches new heights in 2024, now the nation’s third busiest 

Through dramatic growth, the VTC is now the nation’s third busiest transplant center by volume, saving 136 more critically ill patients in calendar year 2024 than in 2023.

Various instruments sit out for use during a heart transplant surgery on Jan. 15. (photo by Erin O. Smith)

How many surgical instruments are used to set the 2024 heart transplant world record?

A standard heart transplant requires surgical instruments spread across multiple sterile tables — from tiny vascular clamps to hefty retractors to keep the surgical field open.

Vanderbilt Transplant Center sets world record for heart transplants in 2024

The Vanderbilt Transplant Center had a banner year in 2024. The number of patients whose lives were saved by Vanderbilt’s heart transplant team far surpasses any previous total by an individual transplant center. 

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