Steven Gallagher (48) has been suffering from scleroderma for 13 years, a chronic autoimmune disease that causes skin problems, but can also affect internal organs. It started as a rash, but it got worse and worse. After seven years his fingers started to cramp and eventually he could only make a fist with his hands. “The pain was unbearable.”
Medical experts therefore recommended a double hand transplant to Gallagher. The man initially refused for fear of the risks, but then decided to agree to the operation. “My wife and I talked about it and decided to go for it. I could lose my hands anyway. So this was basically a matter of letting go of my hands,” he told local media.
12 hour operation
He underwent a 12-hour surgery after a donor was found. “After the surgery I woke up and it was surreal. These hands are amazing!”
The pain is gone and Gallagher was able to move his hands not long after the surgery. He doesn’t really have fine motor skills yet, but he can dress himself, turn on the tap and pet his dog. The operation took place in December last year, but Gallagher is now showing the result to local media for the first time.
The hand transplant team at the hospital where the surgery took place says the transplant of two new hands is a world first.