Boston face transplant surgeon encouraged by report on French patient

By Liz Kowalczyk, Globe Staff

A Boston surgeon who plans to do partial face transplants said he is encouraged by a mostly positive report about the French woman who received the world's first face transplant two years ago.

Doctors of Isabelle Dinoire reported in today's New England Journal of Medicine that their patient is "doing well" and that the functional and aesthetic results of her transplant are "satisfactory."

Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, a plastic surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital, said Dinoire's face functions extremely well. "This demonstrates for the first time, that you can achieve good function. She can articulate well, she can eat, drink, smile and socialize. Overall, it's remarkable."

But Pomahac pointed out that Dinoire's recovery has not been problem free; she has suffered kidney failure and two episodes when her immune system tried to reject the new face, requiring increased doses of anti-rejection drugs. "We really don't know what will happen 10 years from now," he said. "Will she undergo chronic rejection or will she be fine?"

The Brigham approved partial face transplants on certain disfigured patients earlier this year. Pomahac said he has started looking for candidates by speaking to doctors at other Boston-area hospitals, particularly oncologists who might have patients disfigured by facial cancer. He does not yet have a candidate for a transplant.

The Brigham also is awaiting final approval from the New England Organ Bank, which oversees the process of finding donors.