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World J Transplant. Dec 24, 2013; 3(4): 48-53
Published online Dec 24, 2013. doi: 10.5500/wjt.v3.i4.48
Published online Dec 24, 2013. doi: 10.5500/wjt.v3.i4.48
Current status of clinical islet transplantation
Andrew R Pepper, Boris Gala-Lopez, AM James Shapiro, Department of Clinical Islet Transplant Program, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2C8, Alberta, Canada
Oliver Ziff, AM James Shapiro, Department of Surgery, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2B7, Alberta, Canada
Author contributions: Pepper AR and Gala-Lopez B contributed equally to this work designing the research and writing the paper; Ziff O performed bibliographic revision and designed figures; Shapiro AMJ designed the research and revised the final manuscript as senior author.
Correspondence to: AM James Shapiro, MD, PhD, Professor, Director of Clinical Islet and Living Donor Liver Transplant Programs, Department of Clinical Islet Transplant Program, University of Alberta, 2000 College Plaza, 8215-112th St, Edmonton T6G 2C8, Alberta, Canada. amjs@islet.ca
Telephone: +1-780-4077330 Fax: +1-780-4078259
Received: July 26, 2013
Revised: August 16, 2013
Accepted: August 28, 2013
Published online: December 24, 2013
Processing time: 158 Days and 13 Hours
Revised: August 16, 2013
Accepted: August 28, 2013
Published online: December 24, 2013
Processing time: 158 Days and 13 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Since the initial inception of the “Edmonton protocol”, phenomenal progress has transpired in the last decade. These milestones were namely due to the implementation of numerous pre-clinical and clinical investigations, testing innovative agents allowing potent immunotolerance with minimal complications as well as alternative transplant sites to overcome limitations inherent to the current intraportal access. As a result nearly 80% of full or partial graft function, out of more than 300 transplants performed to date. As the field of continues to work and progress together, it is foreseeable that a cure for type 1 diabetes mellitus is obtainable in the near future.