It is like a fairy story! Or at least a beautiful epic, a truly significant page in the history of medicine, a staggering scene in which several actors come into play, both fundamentalists and clinical practitioners, eager to place all these new developments at the disposal of those suffering from ill health. Everyone is passionate about their work, be it providing new knowledge or perfecting new therapeutic methods. Man has always been fascinated by the possibility of replacing a damaged organ with a healthy one. Several attempts have been made over the centuries, and some miracles have been reported, such as those of Saint Damien and Saint Come as illustrated by Fra Angelico. The modern saga, however, started more modestly on the mouse. It is on the mouse that the first tissue group was discovered; yet the study of human tissue groups could only be carried out on a human. One human must be subjected to the thousands of tests that have enabled us to unravel the extraordinary complexity of the HLA system.
About the Author:

Nadey S Hakim, GCSJ, MD, PhD, FRCS, FRCSI, FACS, FICS(Hon), FASMBS, FIMSA(Hon), FRCS Glagow (Hon). Nadey S. Hakim is a transplant surgeon and author. With over 30 years as a surgeon, Hakim has performed over 2,500 transplants. Hakim received his MD from Paris Descartes University in 1984 and was Laureate of the Faculty of Medicine of Paris. He did his surgical training at Guy's Hospital, and received his PhD in small bowel transplantation from University College London. His Gastrointestinal Fellowship was at the Mayo Clinic and his Multi-organ Transplant Fellowship was at the University of Minnesota. Hakim began the first Pancreas Transplant Program in South East England performing the first pancreas transplant in London at St Mary's Hospital in 1995. The world's first hand transplant was performed in September 1998 by a team of surgeons including Hakim, Hakim also took part in the first double arm transplant. He was awarded Honorary Professorships from Lyon University (2005), Ricardo Palma University, Başkent University, University of São Paulo (2007), University of Belgrade (2018) and was visiting professor at several institutions worldwide including Harvard University and the Cleveland Clinic. Hakim was the first recipient of the Max Thorek Professorship of Surgery. He is currently Adjunct Professor of Transplantation Surgery at Imperial College London. Hakim was surgical director of the West London Renal and Transplant Centre at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (1995-2015). Governor of the American College of Surgeons, Counsellor (Europe) of the Transplantation Society (TTS). He was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur in 2018 and has become a Member of the prestigious Academie Francaise de Chirurgie.

Mehmet Haberal was born in 1944 in Rize, Turkey. Received his medical degree in 1967 from Ankara University Medical School and completed his General Surgery residency at Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey.

He has been heralded as a pioneer in the fields of general surgery, transplantation, and burn treatment in Turkey and the world since 1975. He performed the first successful living-related kidney transplantation, the first successful deceased-donor kidney transplantation, the first successful local deceased-donor kidney transplantation in Turkey. He is the first person to perform the first successful deceased-donor liver transplantation in Turkey, in the Middle East and in Northern Africa in 1988. This was followed with the first pediatric segmental living-related liver transplant in Turkey, the region, and in Europe and succeeded by the first adult segmental living-related liver transplant in the world. In 1992, he performed combined liver-kidney transplant from a living-related donor, the first operation of its kind in the world.

In 1993, he founded Baskent University in Ankara, Turkey. He established hospitals, dialysis centers, rehabilitation centers, and foundations throughout the country.

He was granted Honorary Fellowship in the American Surgical Association, received Honorary Fellowship in the International College of Surgeons. He was the first Turkish Surgeon to be awarded Honorary Fellowship of the American College of Surgeons, received the first Distinguished Fellowship ever awarded by the Royal Society of Medicine. He was the first Turkish Surgeon awarded Honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow.

His Majesty King Felipe VI, King of Spain, bestowed upon him the award of The Spanish Order of the Civil Merit (Cruz de Official) in recognition to the professional career of Professor Haberal in the fields of Medicine and Education.

Professor Haberal is the President of The Transplantation Society for the term of 2018-2020.