A nine-year-old boy with a rare genetic condition has become the youngest in the UK to undergo an operation to remove his pancreas and transplant his insulin-producing cells at the same time.
Archie Routledge, from Workington, Cumbria, carries a rare genetic mutation which causes hereditary pancreatitis, causing significant abdominal pain and a significantly increased risk of pancreatic cancer later in life.
The boy spent five months in the Great North Children’s Hospital with pancreatitis, unable to eat whilst receiving nutrition via a drip.
Surgeons seized the opportunity to carry out the life-saving operation whilst the pancreas had slightly recovered.
During the total pancreatectomy and autologous islet cell transplant, the specialist team removed the pancreas, harvested the insulin-secreting islet cells from the pancreas, and then reinfused the cells back into the liver to find a home and help manage blood sugar by producing insulin.
Professor Steve White, consultant in hepato-pancreato-biliary and transplant surgeon at Newcastle Hospitals, was involved in the first operation of this kind when he was training in Leicester. He has since carried out this complicated procedure mainly for adults in the northeast.
He said: ‘Archie has a rare mutation which caused him to have repeated inflammation of the pancreas and had been in hospital for over five months, which was a real strain for his whole family who live in Cumbria.
‘We had a window of opportunity when his pancreas settled down to operate and perform the transplant. Taking out someone’s pancreas makes the individual diabetic, so they must then take insulin to prevent them from having complications such as blindness and kidney failure.
‘To help reduce the risk of diabetes, during the operation, once we had removed the pancreas, we isolated the islet cells at the Centre for Life. The islets, which produce insulin, were then returned whilst the operation was still underway and injected into the liver so Archie could produce some of his own insulin. They will survive many years and help control Archie’s blood sugar levels. We are unique in Newcastle as we have the skills to do many complex transplant operations.’
The 15-hour surgery saw Professor White lead a team involving paediatric surgeon Liz O’Connor, who performed Archie’s previous surgery, another surgeon, Professor Sanjay Pandanaboyana, anaesthetists, pain specialists, psychologists, diabetes specialists, gastroenterologists and scientists.
Archie is now recovering at home and is making good progress.
