Wounded Warriors To Receive Penis Transplant In Baltimore

BALTIMORE (WJZ)--Doctors at Johns Hopkins Medical Center are preparing for a groundbreaking surgery. In the next six months, they will perform the first penis transplant ever in the U.S.

WJZ's Jessica Kartalija explains.

At Johns Hopkins plans are underway for a very unique transplant.

"We are getting ready, sometime soon, to perform the first genital transplant in the United States, and we are focusing our initial efforts on the wounded warriors," said Dr. Redett, plastic surgeon.

Surgeons hope to give wounded veterans penis and scrotum tissue that would allow urination and sexual activity.

"We have been doing studies, we published studies, we are evaluating patients," said Dr. Redett. "The team has surgeons, nurses, surgical techs, psychologists, psychiatrists, ethicists, we have taken a lot of time to put together a very good and experienced team to do the transplant."

Dr. Arthur Burnett is the urologic surgeon.

"This involves a lot of intricate structures, the nerves, blood vessels. It involves transplanting the penis, but conceivably the pelvis to make these men whole again," says Dr. Burnett.

Some say this isn't a life-saving procedure, and may be unnecessary.

Dr. Redett says, "I think it's easy to criticize this until you actually meet these wounded warriors who have actually been through it.  They have the injury, you see how badly it affects their life.  It becomes a pretty easy decision. Many of them say it's something they think will restore their self-image, restore their sense of masculinity, and restore their personal relationships."

Hopkins has authorized its doctors to perform 60 of the operations, which should take less than 12 hours each.

The screening process is extremely thorough. Fewer than five patients are being considered for the first surgery and a team of 25 to 30 medical professionals will be involved.

The timeline for the operation depends on when a donor in Maryland can be found.

The experimental surgery, was done successfully last year in South Africa.