Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have developed an oral vaccine that may prevent rejection of corneal transplants. The vaccine involves feeding processed corneal cells from donor corneas to recipients over time, training their immune system to accept donated corneas without the need for powerful immunosuppressive drugs.
Researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center have developed a new approach to treating long-term diabetic patients by transplanting their pancreas alone. The study found that using two new anti-rejection drugs, Prograf and Cellcept, resulted in a one-year pancreas survival rate of 77 percent for patients.
Researchers at Penn State's Milton S. Hershey Medical Center are developing an electromechanical artificial heart to save thousands of lives. The device is expected to be widely available by 2005 and could implant over 50,000 patients per year.