1st trachea transplant on COVID patient

(ANSA) - ROME, APR 15 - For the first time in the world a post-COVID patient has received a total transplant of the trachea, at Rome's Sant'Andrea Hospital, a press conference was told in the capital Thursday.
    The March 3 operation was on a 50-year-old man whose trachea had been destroyed by cancer and years of treatment, doctors said.
    It was a complete success, said thoracic surgeon Cecilia Menna, who led the operation.
    "The patient was able to speak, breathe and swallow on his own immediately afterwards," she said.
    The trachea was replaced by a piece of the aorta, kept open by a silicone cylinder, she said. (ANSA).