| ■ Surgeons Announce First Artificial Bronchus Graft | 2011.03.06 |
| In a world-first, French surgeons say they successfully grafted an artificial bronchus into a 78-year-old patient with lung cancer. A bronchus is a main branch of the airway that carries air to the lungs. The surgery in October 2009 prevented the need for complete removal of the patient's lung. Details about the achievement appear in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery. The patient "is very well," thoracic and vascular surgeon Emmanuel Martinod told Agence France-Presse.The artificial bronchus was created using biological material strengthened by a stent. It took 10 years of research before the surgeons were ready to use this innovation in a patient. |