When death becomes life. The daily life of a transplant surgeon.
Please sign in so that we can notify you about a reply
Joshua Mezrich is a transplant surgeon with over 20 years of experience. He also heads the immunology laboratory at the University of Wisconsin (USA). He lives in Madison with his wife and two daughters.
This book sheds light on one of the most important and significant achievements of modern medicine: organ transplantation from person to person, which has allowed millions of people to have a chance at a decent existence and even life. The author delves into the captivating history of transplant surgery and draws parallels with inspiring, and sometimes heart-wrenching, stories of his patients.
While most doctors fight against death, transplant surgeons, paradoxically, benefit from it through the incredible exchange between the living and the dead.
Joshua Mezrich raises interesting ethical and philosophical questions:
- What risks are acceptable for a healthy person to take to save someone they care about?
- Can an alcoholic expect to receive a donor liver?
- What is death, and what role has organ transplantation played in defining it?
Interesting facts:
- Transplant surgery is a branch of medicine based on the ability to sew blood vessels through which blood flows into the new organ.
- Each donor organ is packed in three sterile packages for protection.
- During kidney transplantation, the diseased organ is usually not removed, but the new kidney is placed below it, connected to blood vessels running down the leg.
- A newly transplanted kidney turns pink and starts splashing urine on the operating field and surgeons' hands. This is normal!
- Skin transplantation always ends in rejection, which is a temporary measure to stabilize the patient.
- For unknown reasons, lungs are subject to a unique type of chronic rejection that limits the lifespan. People live from one to five years after transplantation.
- Pancreas transplantation, unlike other organs, is not about life itself but about its quality! Patients no longer need to monitor their blood sugar levels, thus getting rid of diabetes.
- Organs from elderly donors can function properly, but they are temperamental and do not like cold: they need to be transplanted as quickly as possible.
- Stopping the heart before its removal leads to irreversible damage to the organ.
Author:
Author:Mezrich Joshua
Cover:
Cover:soft
Category:
- Category:Biographies & Memoirs
- Category:Medical Books
Publication language:
Publication Language:Russian
Paper:
Paper:newsprint
Dimensions:
Dimensions:18x11.5x2.5 cm
Series:
Series:Books that are talked about
Age restrictions:
Age restrictions:16+
ISBN:
ISBN:978-5-04-189045-2
No reviews found