Principal Investigator: Robert Dowling
Office: (502) 561-2180
E-mail: rddowl01@gwise.louisville.edu
What is Heart Transplantation?
Heart transplantation is a procedure offered to patients who have end-stage heart disease. Normally your heart functions by pumping oxygen rich blood throughout your body and returning oxygen poor blood to your lungs. Heart failure is a dangerous condition, which can in turn affect other organs. Some patients with heart failure are candidates for a heart transplant.
Bone Marrow Transplantation to Induce Tolerance
Bone marrow transplantation combined with a heart transplant is a new approach that may avoid the need for long-term anti-rejection drug therapy. The bone marrow is specially processed to select certain types of cells that may give you a better chance of tolerating the new donor heart, thereby decreasing your chance of rejection. The hope is that you may require fewer drugs and reduced dosages of anti-rejection drugs.
More About BMT and Mixed Chimerism
Clinical Trial for Heart Tolerance
The purpose of this clinical trial will be to try and stimulate your body to produce a tolerance to your new heart. This tolerance would allow your immune system to see the transplanted heart as part of yourself and not try and reject it. You would also maintain your own immunity to diseases and infections.
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