"I am very excited about it," said Mr. McCullum, who on April 8 became the first patient in the history of MCGHealth to undergo a heart transplant. "I’m glad to have it. But whether I was first, second, or whatever, I’m just a regular guy, and happy to have been given a second chance."

“This was a vision I had for MCGHealth and this community when I came here,” said Dr. Kevin Landolfo, MCGHealth Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery and Director of the Cardiac Transplant Program. “What we aim to provide is more hope for area patients on the waiting list for a new heart by giving them a place closer to home where they can receive a transplant.”

About 2,100 heart transplants are performed in the United States each year, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network. In the region where MCGHealth is located, there are currently 318 candidates on the waiting list for a new heart; and until recently, there were only 16 hospitals designated for heart transplantation in the six-state region. MCGHealth is the only medical facility outside of Atlanta currently performing heart transplants in Georgia. South Carolina has only one hospital with a heart transplant program.

MCGHealth gained approval from the United Network for Organ Sharing last summer to begin its cardiac transplant program. “This was a team effort,” said Dr. Landolfo. “We were given the green light in July after spending two years building and preparing our team of two surgeons, two cardiologists, two heart failure/transplant coordinators, a nephrologist, an administrative director, a data coordinator, database analyst, social worker and an administrative assistant,” he said. “We couldn’t accomplish such a great feat without the entire team.” 

The behind the scenes team includes a group of OR, Perfusion and ICU staff, who rotate 24/7 call once an MCGHealth transplant candidate reaches category 1-A status. They have been specially trained to care for these patients before, during and after transplant.

When a donor heart was found for Mr. McCullum, the transplant team was mobilized for quick action. Transplant Surgeon Dr. Vijay Patel was flown to the donor. He removed the organ and accompanied it to the Augusta operating room, where Transplant Cardiologist Dr. Chandra Kunavarapu readied Mr. McCullum to receive it. Then Drs. Landolfo and Patel put the heart in the chest of its new owner and watched as the organ began to beat. “That was a great moment for the team,” Dr. Landolfo said.

Dr. Landolfo, who joined MCGHealth in 2003, led the cardiac transplant team at Duke University Medical Center for five years. A highly seasoned physician, he specializes in all aspects of cardiac surgery, particularly valve repair. He pioneered the use of robotics in heart surgery.

“The certification process requires that the first nine cardiac transplants be performed at no cost to our patients, putting our financial investment in the startup of this program at more than $2 million.  We are committed to making this investment to save lives,” said Don Snell, President and CEO of MCGHealth.

“Four years ago, MCGHealth made a commitment to Dr. Landolfo that we would provide the resources for him to perform our first heart transplant within four years and we’ve delivered on that promise. MCGHealth already is the only health system in the CSRA capable of performing the more advanced and complex electrophysiology procedures, and now with heart transplantation, we’ve taken another leap forward in developing our Cardiovascular Center of Excellence."

In addition to the cardiac transplant program, MCGHealth has a Kidney/Pancreas Transplant Program. Since 1968, surgeons in the program have performed more than 1,800 kidney transplants, setting a record annual high of 110 transplants in 2007.

MCG Health, Inc. (d/b/a MCGHealth) is a not-for-profit corporation operating the MCGHealth Medical Center, MCGHealth Children’s Medical Center, the Georgia Radiation Therapy Center, and related outpatient facilities and services throughout the state.  For more information, please visit mcghealth.org.