VOA英语2010年-Double Transplant Can Improve Quality of Lif

The surgeons sew a piece of small intestine¹ from the transplanted pancreas to Tiffany Buchta's own intestine during her double transplant surgery. Diabetes² affects more than 220 million people worldwide, with the greatest number of cases in India, China and the United States. It can lead to life-threatening complications, but a double organ transplant can give some diabetics a new lease on life.

It's 5:30 a.m. in an operating room at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. Surgeon Jason Wellen points to his patient's open abdominal³ cavity, and her newly transplanted pancreas.

"Here's the vein⁴ where the blood flows out, that we made a connection - you see the sutures right there?"

A light blue surgical⁵ sheet covers the rest of the patient's body and blocks the surgeon's view of her face. Her name is Tiffany Buchta. She has type 1 diabetes.

Early diagnosis⁶

Before the surgery, Buchta - an administrator⁷ at a local community center - continued to work fulltime even when she was on dialysis.

She was diagnosed at 15. Formerly⁸ known as juvenile⁹ diabetes, the type 1 form develops when the body's immune system turns on itself, destroying the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. About 10 percent of diabetics have this form of the disease.

 

The exact cause of type 1 diabetes isn't known, but researchers believe a combination of genetics and environmental factors are to blame.

As a teenager, Buchta was an athlete, playing basketball for her high school. But after her diagnosis, life got a lot more complicated.

"Having a more strict schedule on when you eat, and taking your medicine, and weighing out your foods, and things like that," says Buchta. "It was kind of difficult at the beginning, but you just get used to it."

Unlike type 2 diabetics, who can often control their disease with diet, exercise, and oral medication, people with type 1 diabetes need daily insulin injections to survive. The disease can be particularly tough on the kidneys.

"Probably about three years ago, four years ago, I found out that my kidneys were like 45 percent functioning, and didn't realize that it could happen so quick."

Kidney transplant

That was when she was in her early 30s. By October of last year, Buchta's kidneys had pretty much stopped working. Three times a week, she had to go to a local clinic. There, she spent three and a half hours hooked up to a dialysis machine. It filtered the waste products out of her blood, doing the job her kidneys no longer could.

Then Buchta was offered the possibility of a transplant: not just a new kidney, but a pancreas, too.

"If I was to just give a type 1 diabetic a kidney transplant, over time their diabetes is going to attack that kidney, just like it did their own kidneys," says Dr. Wellen. "So when you offer them a kidney and a pancreas transplant from the same donor¹⁰, not only do you drastically improve their quality of life - so their sugar's completely normal, no longer need for insulin - but it makes that kidney last longer."

Buchta's transplanted pancreas and kidney are attached to blood vessels¹¹ in her lower abdomen¹², leaving her own pancreas and kidneys in place. Her original pancreas still produces digestive enzymes¹³, while her new pancreas makes the insulin she needs.

Her newly transplanted kidney will filter her blood and produce urine.

Hopeful future

With careful control of their blood glucose¹⁴, cholesterol¹⁵, and blood pressure, many type 1 diabetics can avoid serious complications. But for those who do develop renal failure, Wellen says a kidney-pancreas transplant can be life-saving.

"If she did not get this transplant, Tiffany would have a 30 percent chance of living five years."

With the pancreas and kidney of her donor - a 23-year-old car crash victim - Buchta is likely to live longer.

"This operation should give her a five year survival hopefully in the 85 percent range," says Wellen. "So you're going from a 30 percent chance of living five years to an 85 percent chance. I mean that's a big difference."

Instead of insulin, Buchta will now need to take medications that suppress her immune system, to keep her body from rejecting her new organs. The drugs will also make her more vulnerable to infections and disease.

But it's all worth it to Buchta. One month after the surgery, she's just happy to be off dialysis.

"I mean I have so much more energy," she says. "And even with, you know, starting back to work, I was kind of scared on how, how much that would wear me out, but it really hasn't."

And as Buchta puts it, it's just nice to have her life back.

1 intestine   

adj.内部的；国内的；n.肠

参考例句：

• This vitamin is absorbed through the walls of the small intestine.这种维生素通过小肠壁被吸收。
• The service productivity is the function,including external efficiency,intestine efficiency and capacity efficiency.服务业的生产率是一个包含有外部效率、内部效率和能力效率的函数。

2 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

3 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。

4 vein   

n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络

参考例句：

• The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。
• The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。

5 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

6 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

7 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

8 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

9 juvenile   

n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的

参考例句：

• For a grown man he acted in a very juvenile manner.身为成年人，他的行为举止显得十分幼稚。
• Juvenile crime is increasing at a terrifying rate.青少年犯罪正在以惊人的速度增长。

10 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

11 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 abdomen   

n.腹，下腹(胸部到腿部的部分)

参考例句：

• How to know to there is ascarid inside abdomen?怎样知道肚子里面有蛔虫？
• He was anxious about an off-and-on pain the abdomen.他因时隐时现的腹痛而焦虑。

13 enzymes   

n. 酶，酵素

参考例句：

• It was said that washing powders containing enzymes remove stains more efficiently. 据说加酶洗衣粉除污更有效。
• Among the enzymes which are particularly effective are pepsin, papain. 在酶当中特别有效的是胃朊酶、木瓜酶。

14 glucose   

n.葡萄糖

参考例句：

• I gave him an extra dose of glucose to pep him up.我给他多注射了一剂葡萄糖以增强他的活力。
• The doctor injected glucose into his patient's veins.医生将葡萄糖注入病人的静脉。

15 cholesterol   

n.（U）胆固醇

参考例句：

• There is cholesterol in the cell of body.人体细胞里有胆固醇。
• They are determining the serum-protein and cholesterol levels.他们正在测定血清蛋白和胆固醇的浓度。