PANCREAS
Over the past 30 years , the UAB Pancreas Transplant Program has performed nearly 420 kidney / pancreas and pancreas-only transplants . In addition to outstanding outcomes , one thing that sets our program apart is our willingness to perform pancreas after kidney ( PAK ) and simultaneous pancreas and kidney ( SPK ) transplants in suitable patients . We also perform pancreas transplant alone ( PTA ) procedures for patients whose glucose levels are not controlled with insulin pumps and other modalities .
PATIENT STORY :
OLDER PATIENT RECEIVES NEW KIDNEY AND PANCREAS , THANKS TO EXPANDED CRITERIA
ORGANS – PANCREAS
UAB is a leader in caring for patients with serious complications related to insulin-dependent diabetes . Alabama has a disproportionate number of people with diabetes , so UAB is committed to staying ahead of the curve to better serve the health of our population . For that reason , we will evaluate potential transplant candidates with type 2 diabetes who are insulin-dependent , in addition to those with type 1 . Providing pancreas transplants to patients with type 2 diabetes often gives them the ability to produce additional insulin , thereby making them insulin-independent and reducing their risk of diabetic complications . In fact , new data show that their outcomes may be just as good as with type 1 diabetics , who traditionally have been considered for pancreas transplantation .
EXCELLENCE IN ONE-YEAR PATIENT AND GRAFT SURVIVAL ( 2021 )
Carol Glover
Carol Glover retired in 2017 after working 32 years for University of Alabama Athletics , and she was looking forward to her upcoming wedding and traveling the world with her new husband . Glover couldn ’ t have foreseen that her journey would lead to her becoming the oldest kidney-pancreas transplant patient at the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute ( CTI ).
Glover developed type I diabetes in 1997 , when she was 39 . “ I injected four shots of insulin a day and kept it fairly well controlled ,” she says . That ’ s why she was puzzled – and more than a little alarmed – when her blood sugar began dropping about a year after her wedding . “ I had such extreme lows that my husband was afraid to leave my side . He called 911 on more than one occasion .” uabmedicine . org / refertransplant 25