It all started in 1958. That year, at the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH), the first successful kidney transplant in Canada and the Commonwealth was performed. This groundbreaking event set the stage for the growth and development of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) Multi-Organ Transplant Program.

 Today, transplantation at McGill is based at the Royal Victoria and Montreal Children’s hospitals.  A total of approximately 140 kidney, liver, pancreas and heart transplants are performed annually, representing one third of the transplants done in the province of Quebec. Although most patients are from metropolitan  Montreal, many come from other parts of Quebec like the Outaouais and Abitibi-Temiscamingue. Others have come from across Canada, from Saskatchewan and Manitoba, to Newfoundland and the Maritimes. Over 1000 patients receive ongoing transplant care at the MUHC, making it one of the largest and most comprehensive multi-organ transplant programs in Canada.

 The MUHC strives to bring the best professional expertise to the care of transplant patients. The health care team includes surgeons, cardiologists, hepatologists, nephrologists, intensive care specialists, anesthesiologists, nurses, coordinators, physiotherapists, pharmacists, and social workers, who all work together to ensure the success of the program. Team meetings are held regularly to discuss individual cases and important policy issues related to transplant patient care.

There are many examples that illustrate this multi-disciplinary approach, so important to the MUHC team: in 2002, over 100 professionals contributed to the care of Emile Jutras, a 2-year old boy who received a heart transplant at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. Many other children with transplants are cared for at the MUHC, and physicians with the help of clinical nurse specialists have developed a program to ensure a seamless transition from pediatric to adult care for these young patients.

 Leadership is also an important quality at the MUHC: “If people say it cannot be done, we say: why not?” transplant surgeon Dr. Jean Tchervenkov explains. In this context, the MUHC team welcomes challenging cases that require special attention and innovative approaches.  This has resulted in pioneering work in the use of mechanical hearts, and in combined organ transplantation (heart-liver, heart-kidney, liverkidney).

The MUHC Multi-Organ Transplant Program is also very involved in clinical and basic research. Areas of interest include immunosuppression, patient outcomes, islet cell transplantation, ischemia reperfusion injury and xenotransplantation. The medical and surgical teams are well represented in scientific venues. They participate actively in national and international meetings, and  are responsible for a large number of abstracts and publications every year. To facilitate quality improvement, teaching and research, the MUHC Multi-Organ Transplant Program has developed a comprehensive database containing information on over 2000 transplant patients. The program also welcomes a number of fellows and residents for specific transplant clinical and research training.

Additionally, MUHC professionals are key participants in the Quebec and Canadian transplantation community. In fact, MUHC surgeons are responsible for about 40% of all the abdominal organ procurements done in the province of Quebec. Members of the MUHC team are also active in policy making at Quebec-Transplant and at the national and international level through involvement with the Canadian Council for Donation and Transplantation, the Canadian Society of Transplantation, the American Society of Transplantation, the American Society of Transplant Surgeons and The Transplantation Society.

 All these initiatives and achievements have a single unwavering focus: helping transplant patients lead healthy and productive lives. For all MUHC professionals, from the nursing staff to the surgical and medical teams, excellence in patient care through education, analysis and quality improvement is the overriding goal and the key to the recognized success of the program.

At the close of 2007, the MUHC had a total number of 2536 transplants to its credit since the landmark twin-to-twin live donor transplant in 1958. This is tangible proof of our ongoing commitment to patient care, leadership and innovation.