Growing Seeds Of Hope
It’s been forty years since the AdventHealth Transplant Institute began performing transplants; since then more than 3,700 transplant surgeries have given patients at AdventHealth a new hope for tomorrow.
Growing Hope, Cultivating Healthy Tomorrows: AdventHealth Transplant Institute
Over the decades, the Institute has been responsible for offering the only kidney, liver, heart and lung transplant program in Central Florida.
“We are the only multi organ transplant program in Central Florida and we serve an important need in the community, transplanting close to 300 patients a year that would have otherwise had to travel to other places,” says Dr. Michael Angelis, Vice Chair, Department of Transplantation and Surgical Director of Abdominal Transplant Services.
As the only multi organ transplant program in Central Florida, we serve close to 300 patients a year that would have otherwise would have had to travel other places.
Medical milestones have been many, including becoming the first hospital in the state and the second in the country to perform a new procedure known as “Single-Incision Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy.”
“Since we are in a large medical facility within the AdventHealth system, there is lots of support. It’s not just about the surgeon’s skills, it’s a team approach and our success has truly been a direct extension of our passion.”
“When I got sick I had to stop many things, including running. I used to run 20 miles. It really broke me to give that up,” says Edwin Arce, who was the recipient of Central Florida's first heart transplant. “Now, it’s like a thousand pounds have been lifted off of me. When the surgery was over, I felt my heart ticking and I thought it was going to crash out of my rib cage; that’s how powerful it was. To go from so weak to feeling like Hercules was amazing. I felt like I wanted to run a marathon. It was like I was just existing before; but now I am alive.“
If you would like to help support the transplant institute please visit adventhealthcancerinstitute.com.
