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How many organs do surgeons remove for donations?

I am curious because I am studying to be a surgeon but I am petrified of touching things like kidneys. Please help!#kidneys

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Jessie’s Answer

Organ donation is a very special blessing. When someone or their family chooses to save the lives of others, health care workers stand up and witness as they are escorted down the hall to the operating room. Special teams fly and drive in from other transplant hospitals and perform the procurement in a certain order so the organs are removed in the safest and most efficient manner.
That being said, there are relatively few transplant surgeons Vs general surgeons, orthopedic surgeons Vs urologic surgeons and neurosurgeons. Also in medicine, there are many non surgeons! Pediatrician, psychiatrists, family practice.
I have gone my whole career and never touched a kidney. Also, you get desensitized to operating. I wouldn’t let this stop you.

Jessie recommends the following next steps:

Keep studying
Keep experiencing
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Lisa’s Answer

HI Toumas actually I work as a transplant nurse. I am also a transplant recipient. The only organ currently that is not transplantable is the brain and spinal cord. Virtually any organ in your body including bone and tendon, muscle is potentially transplantable. We are in some cases even transplanting hands and faces! The order of the removal is the most important as there are strict timeframes for transplanting the organ into the recipient. Some organs such as the heart and lungs are transplanted within 4 hours of removal or harvest. Ideally for any of the major organs the less time there is between donor and recipient is best. Some of the tissues stem cells, tendon, bone can be frozen and used at a later time. Typically the order of removal of organs is heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, kidneys, large and small intestine, with eyes, bone, skin and tendon last. If there is stem cell transplant the donor is not deceased, There are typically multiple teams of surgeons that will harvest for the organ they are harvesting. It can be a challenge to coordinate, and I like to think of it as a well orchestrated dance. I have frequently conducted the pre donor testing, participated in the determination of recipient, calling the individual to go to the hospital for transplant, harvest of the organ, transport the organ and then implant the organ and follow that patient through the hospital stay and their new life with the organ.

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Ryan’s Answer

If you think you may be interested in surgery, you will only know if you seek out opportunities to work with surgeons. There are many specialties and many types of people within each specialty. The broader your experience, the better you will know if it is right for you.
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Saurabh’s Answer

Not all surgeons have to remove organs for transplantation. If you don't want to touch an Organ such as kidneys, you can choose to be a specialist surgeon of other systems such as neurosurgeon, gastrointestinal surgeon, cardiac surgeon or a general surgeon.
Transplant surgeons regularly deal with organs such as liver, kidneys and bowel, etc. The frequency depends upon the case load at their center.
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Michael’s Answer

Before you become a surgeon of any type, you will have to complete medical school. A required course in med school is gross anatomy, in which you will dissect a cadaver, and learn through touching and seeing the relationship that organs have with each other. That includes kidneys, of course. If you then enter surgery residency, you will be touching and learning about specific organs, depending on your specialty. At least in the US, no way to become a transplant surgeon without touching a lot of kidneys.
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Timothy’s Answer

That is a great question. When I was studying for my biochemistry degree and was considering becoming a doctor...the gross anatomy lab where you study the various parts of the body on a dead person, cadaver...really put me off. I talked to my family doctor and he reassured me that the touching organs and being around a cadaver was really a small part of what was involved in becoming a doctor. I ended up actually liking the anatomy lab and studying the parts of the body and wanting to become a surgeon. As a medical student there was very little organ or kidney touching even on surgery rotations. If you are in medical school and want to become a surgeon then spend time with them to see what they do, most surgeons are approachable and like to share with students.

I ended up becoming a plastic surgeon operating on skin, bone, muscle, tendon and nerves...very little organ touching involved. We transplant skin onto patients who are burned and may use tendon or bone transplants.
Plastic surgery isn't what the media makes you think...

Timothy recommends the following next steps:

Contact a local surgeons office to see if you can talk to them for 20-30 minutes and maybe spend some time with them in their clinic.
If you are in medical school see if you can shadow or observe in the surgeons OR day.
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Scheergie’s Answer

About 25 to 50 a year and you will get used to it t
Your body will build up a tolerance!
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