Oklahoma Boy Receives Quadruple Transplant

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Doctors have given a 1-year-old Oklahoma boy a new stomach, small intestine, liver and pancreas in what is believed to be the state's first quadruple-organ transplant operation.

Wednesday, November 26th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Doctors have given a 1-year-old Oklahoma boy a new stomach, small intestine, liver and pancreas in what is believed to be the state's first quadruple-organ transplant operation.

Nicholas Camp of Ada, who suffered from a rare congenital birth defect called gastroschisis, has made significant progress in the eight days since the transplant was performed at Oklahoma City's Integris Baptist Medical Center, Dr. Bakr Nour said Tuesday.

``It's a real success, praise the Lord. Beautiful teamwork, praise the Lord,'' Nour said of the complex, 12-hour procedure that he and a medical team of 20 used to save Camp's life.

The four donated organs, which can fit in two cupped hands, came from a 2-month-old Corpus Christi, Texas, boy who had suffered fatal head wounds.

``Without a generous donor, we wouldn't be here today,'' Nour said.

The tiny vital organs were flown by jet from south Texas to Oklahoma City for the surgery, which lasted through portions of Nov. 16 and 17.

``It was terrifying,'' said Nicholas' mother, Cassi Lakey, 19, of the transplant operation. The boy's father, James Camp, is working in Indiana.

Nour said Nicholas' skin had a yellow color since his birth Nov. 19, 2002. The boy couldn't walk or crawl, and ``he slept a lot,'' his mother said.

Because of the congenital defect, Nicholas was born with the small intestine outside his body.

To keep him alive, doctors had to feed Nicholas intravenously for his first year. However, the condition ultimately caused life-threatening liver and pancreas damage.

Without the transplants, the boy would have died soon, Nour said.

Since the surgery, Nicholas has pink cheeks and the normal color of any 1-year-old, Nour said. He is recovering in the hospital's pediatric intensive care unit.

Doctors will have to monitor Nicholas for the rest of his life to guard against organ rejection and infection.