Transplantation of Other Organs
Skin grafts can be used in people who have lost large areas of skin--for example, because of extensive burns. Skin grafting is most successful when healthy skin is removed from one part of the body and grafted to another part. When such grafting is not possible, skin from a donor or even from animals (such as pigs) can be used as a temporary measure. Such grafts last only a short time, but they can provide temporary protection until normal skin grows to replace them. The amount of skin available for grafting may be increased by growing small pieces of the person's skin in a tissue culture or by making many tiny cuts in the grafted skin, so that it can be stretched to cover a much larger area.
Cartilage may be transplanted successfully without the use of immunosuppressants. The body's immune system attacks transplanted cartilage much less vigorously than other tissues. In children, cartilage is usually used to repair defects in the ears or nose. In adults, it can be used to repair joints damaged by arthritis.
Corneas, the transparent domes on the surface of the eyes, can usually be transplanted successfully without the use of immunosuppressants.
 See the sidebar Corneal Transplants and Why They Usually Work.
Bone from one part of the body can be used to replace bone in another part. Bone transplanted from one person to another survives only a short time. However, it stimulates growth of new bone, stabilizes the area until new bone can form, and provides a framework for new bone to fill in.
Transplantation of the small intestine is experimental. It may be used as a last resort when the intestine has been destroyed by a disorder or does not function well enough to sustain life. Because the small intestine contains a large amount of lymphatic tissue, the new intestinal tissue may produce cells that attack the recipient's cells, causing graft-versus-host disease.
Parkinson's disease can be treated by transplanting tissue from a person's adrenal glands to that person's brain. Alternatively, brain tissue from aborted fetuses can be used. Both procedures can relieve symptoms. However, whether using tissue from aborted fetuses is ethically acceptable is controversial.
Thymus glands from aborted or miscarried fetuses can be transplanted into children who are born without a thymus gland (a disorder called DiGeorge anomaly). When the thymus gland is missing, the immune system is impaired, because white blood cells, which are a vital part of the immune system's defense against foreign substances, mature in the thymus gland. Transplantation of a thymus gland restores the impaired immune system in these children. However, the new thymus may produce cells that attack the recipient's cells, causing graft-versus-host-disease.
See the sidebar Reattaching a Body Part.
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