Disfigured Soldier Receives Two Hands from Dead Woman in Poland

Polish surgeons conducted a unique transplantation operation on a soldier of the nation’s special forces. The 31-year-old man, whose name has not been exposed, was waiting for this surgery for more than three years. In 2007, he saved the life of his colleague, an inexperienced soldier. He snatched a bomb from his hands. He saved the newcomer, but became a disabled individual himself. The bomb explosion severed the man’s left hand and seriously injured his right hand, having left only two fingers on it.

A team of surgeons from the hospital of the town of Trzebnica conducted the unique transplantation of the man’s both hands. The medics said that the surgery, which continued for almost 24 hours, ended successfully.

“Everything turned out to be much more complicated than we thought, but we managed to cope with this,” Adam Domanasiewicz, one of the five surgeons said.

“When the man was ready for surgery, our colleagues from another hospital amputated the hands of a recently deceased middle-aged woman. She became a donor for our hero,” the doctor added.

He also said that the donor’s sex did not matter at all. It was vital for her anatomic parameters to coincide with those of the recipient, Fakt.pl website said.

The patient feels fine. The man is happy and can even move his new fingers, which is a very good sign. Now the soldier will have to stay at hospital for not less than five weeks to recover. Doctors will observe the healing process of his new hands and conduct special physical exercises to develop the mobility of the hands.

It will take the man at least three years to recover completely, but the surgeons are certain that their recipient will be able to use his new hands like any other person.