Director: Davide Cintorino

ISMETT is authorized to perform pancreas and beta cell (pancreatic islet) transplantation.
This treatment is indicated for type 1 diabetic patients.

There are different combinations for pancreas transplantation:

• In combination with a kidney transplant in patients with diabetic nephropathy (chronic renal failure secondary to diabetes). In the case of a combined kidney-pancreas transplant, there is also the possibility that the kidney donor can be a living donor, while the donor of the pancreas is deceased. This combination addresses the issue of the limited number of organs.
• An isolated pancreas transplant, which can prevent the onset of diabetic nephropathy.
• After a kidney transplant in type 1 diabetes patients.

To treat type 1 diabetes, the patient can undergo a transplant of the whole pancreas or of the insulin-producing cells. The transplant of the whole organ or of the insulin-producing cells is decided by the team of doctors and surgeons at ISMETT.

Patients with type 1 diabetes can request a clinical consult and undergo evaluation for inclusion on the ISMETT waiting list.

Diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic diseases
The Abdominal Surgery and Organ Transplantation Unit benefits from the first multidisciplinary center in Sicily for pancreatic diseases, and actively involves clinicians with surgical, gastroenterology, endoscopy, oncology, pathology and radiology competencies. Clinical activity provides patients with diagnosis and treatment of acute, recurrent, or chronic forms of pancreatitis, cystic diseases of the pancreas, and pancreatic tumors. Surgical interventions are performed with standard and laparoscopic techniques and, during the pre-, intra-, and post-op phases make use of echo-endoscopy, interventional endoscopy, intra-op ultrasound, percutaneous cholangiogram, and loco-regional ablation techniques.