10
A Year in Review 2012 – 2013:
Programs
Courage Lives Here
11
Surgical and Critical Care
(...continued from page 9)
Saving Artur
One of the patients Cypel identified for ECLS treatment
was a young man named Artur.
Initially, local medical staff hesitated to perform the
treatment on him, since attempts with other patients in
the past had not been very successful.
But with Cypel’s coaching, assistance and careful post-
procedure patient management, the young man’s lung
function improved dramatically and he survived.
“It was very rewarding to be helping and saving patients
that otherwise would have had a dismal chance of
survival,” Cypel said.
In addition to helping with fire victims, Cypel also lent his
expertise to a man with pneumonia who had only been
given an hour to live. Thanks to Cypel and ECLS support,
the man survived.
Teaching local teams
While in Brazil, Cypel, Serrick and Karkanawi also took the
opportunity to teach local medical teams.
They presented ECLS workshops to doctors, perfusionists
and nurses. The Brazilian teams learned how to select
appropriate candidates for treatment, realized the need
for a specialized “team” and specific practices to use the
machine successfully.
The trip opened the door to plans for future multi-
disciplinary educational symposiums.
Karkanawi said the experience was both “humbling and
amazing”.
“I met a wonderful group of dedicated and enthusiastic
nurses and doctors. It was a very enriching experience for
all,” she said, adding, “It was also a very proud moment
to be a part of UHN and be able to bring our expertise
and technology around the globe.”
For Cypel, the experience was not only rewarding, but
inspiring.
“You see things in the news, but when you see it firsthand,
when you see the families — families so happy that their
child has a chance and is still alive— I think we really made
a difference for a few patients, but in the future we can
make a difference to many,” he said.
GTx-OR
The GTx-OR (for guided therapeutics), a new clinical research operating room, is creating the next
frontier for cancer surgery. Improved hi-tech imaging and tracking tools and a multidisciplinary
team of specialists, including surgeons and engineers, will advance image-guided minimally
invasive surgery. The technologies — a GPS for surgeons —will help navigate inside the body,
spare healthy tissue, ensure greater precision, and deliver targeted therapies to patients with
fewer side effects.
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
An international study on Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), published by the New
England Journal of Medicine, showed that the High Frequency Oscillation method of ventilating
patients in Intensive Care Units can significantly impact their risk of mortality. Dr. Niall Ferguson
found mortality rates higher in patients treated with high-frequency ventilation than patients
treated with conventional mechanical ventilation of lungs.
Peter Munk Cardiac Centre Innovation funds
Using Peter Munk Cardiac Centre Innovation funds, a multidisciplinary (anesthesia, surgery,
perfusion and nursing) blood management program was instituted in cardiac surgery that reduced
blood transfusions by more than 50 per cent.
Highlights
“I think we really made a difference
for a few patients, but in the future
we can make a difference to many.”
–Dr.Marcelo Cypel
