Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas Performs Texas' First Autologous Islet Cell Transplant to Treat Chronic Pancreatitis

Contact: Wendy Walker, 214-820-4581
Email: wendyw@baylorhealth.edu

(DALLAS, Oct. 13, 2006) - Physicians on staff at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas have performed the first autologous islet cell transplant (the transplanted cells were the patient's own) to treat chronic pancreatitis. The patient, Michelle Kelley, a 22-year old from DeBerry, Texas, underwent the procedure on Wednesday, Oct. 11, and is in good condition.

Chronic pancreatitis is ongoing inflammation of the pancreas and occurs when digestive enzymes attack and destroy the pancreas and nearby tissues, causing scarring and severe pain.

"In Ms. Kelley's case, her condition was caused by a genetic abnormality," said Damien Mallat, M.D., gastroenterologist on the medical staff at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas. "However, pancreatitis also can be triggered by a variety of factors, including alcohol abuse, gallstones, developmental abnormalities of the pancreatic duct, certain medications, autoimmune disease or unknown causes."

"Ms. Kelley was diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis when she was 15 years old. This procedure was performed to relieve her from the severe pain, which could no longer be controlled by medication and traditional treatments, caused by her condition," said Jeffrey Lamont, M.D., surgeon on the medical staff at Baylor Dallas.

During the surgery, Ms. Kelley's pancreas was removed in a procedure known as a total pancreatectomy. But, removal of the pancreas also removes the ability to produce digestive enzymes and insulin.

"The digestive enzymes can be replaced by oral medication, but the lack of insulin-producing islet cells will make Ms. Kelley a Type 1 diabetic. Removal of the entire pancreas is not often performed for chronic pancreatitis due to the severity of the diabetes after the surgery. Because Baylor operates an islet cell laboratory, we are at a great advantage over most medical institutions in that we can process the cells close by and infuse them back into the patient quickly," said Dr. Lamont

After the pancreatectomy, islet cell specialists took Ms. Kelley's pancreas to Baylor's islet cell laboratory where the islet cells were separated from the rest of the organ. The cells were then prepared in a solution and delivered back to the operating room, where they were infused through the portal vein into Ms. Kelley's liver.

"The goal is for the islets to continue to produce insulin so that her blood sugars can be controlled by little or no exogenous insulin," said Marlon Levy, M.D., medical director of the islet cell transplant program at Baylor Regional Transplant Institute. "We expect that the islet cells will begin producing insulin over the next several days."

Because the islet cells infused into Ms. Kelley's liver are her own, there is no fear of rejection, which normally occurs after a traditional islet cell transplant in which the cells come from a cadaver donor (known as an allograft islet cell transplant). Ultimately, this means Ms. Kelley will not have to take immunosuppressant medication daily for the rest of her life.

While this is the first autologous islet cell transplantation performed at Baylor Dallas, physicians and researchers on staff at Baylor Dallas are studying allograft islet cell (islet cells from a donor pancreas) transplantation for the treatment of Type 1 diabetes.

Baylor received approval from the FDA to begin a research study of allograft islet cell transplantation in July 2004. Fifteen patients between the ages of 18 and 65 will be enrolled in the study. Currently, physicians on staff at Baylor have performed eight islet cell transplants on patients with Type 1 diabetes. As a result of the transplant, all patients have shown improvements in their blood sugar control, and one patient was able to be weaned from insulin completely after a period of several weeks.

Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, a 997-bed not-for-profit academic hospital, is a major patient care and research center in the southwest. The nationally acclaimed medical center serves as flagship hospital for Baylor Health Care System and is home to many nationally ranked centers of excellence including transplantation, cardiovascular services, orthopaedics, oncology, digestive diseases, neurosciences and gynecology. In 2006, U.S. News & World Report recognized Baylor Dallas for the 14th consecutive year in its "America's Best Hospitals" guide.