Poge Ten THE MICHIGAN DAILY Friday, Auqust 30, 1968 PageTenTHE ICHGAN AIL "Fridayts Aiiosustc Mv ..O 1 9iR a ir -rai ir ir 4-ik ev -w% -ir ri-v A -a- ro-v w-v A -a Ar U' HOSPITAL TEAM: Surgeons ready for transplant as cardiac patient nears death By JIM NEUBACHER Like a squadron of jet fight- er pilots, a 22-man surgical team waits in University Hos- pital for, the call to scramble and scrub. They wait for a call telling them there is a potential donor for a heart transplant operation -their first. They wait with a well re- -hearsed schedule in hand, a schedule that requires removal of the donor's heart within ten minutes of his death. At the same time, the poten- tial recipient is fighting a battle with time, slowly dying of cardio myopathy, a degeneration of the heart muscle. He faces death' unless a new heart is found for him. Other potential recipients have died in University Hos- pital' waiting for a donor.i In addition to this bluntly obvious barrier, there are other complications that have .added to the tension surrounding the planned operation. The first of these has been a monetary problem. The po- tential recipient in the opera- tion, Mr. Phillip T. Barnum, an official in the secretary of state's office in Kalamazoo, t cannot afford to pay for the operation and intensive hos- pital care. In order to fund the opera- tion, Mr. Barnum; was :placed in the Clinical Research Unit (CRU) of the hospital.d The CRU is supported by a federal grant, and accepts only patients with unusual medical problems. The grant pays for the, care of these patients and the doctors have an opportunity to study new and better treatments. Recently, however, the unitt was completely shut down be- cause of a shortage of federal funds, and Barnum faced pay- ing for care in the regular hos- pital himself. The situation has been par- tially resolved by University Hospital officials who have decided to make an exception to the shut down of the unit.for Barnum. And although the, Barnum family is still legally responsible for the finances at this time, efforts are being made to solicit private means of sup- port. Sen. Phillip Hart is at- tempting to have funds made available to the University to cover the cost of the trans- plant. In addition, the Veteran's Ad- ministration has offered to pay for the cost of the operation if the patient is transferred to one of its research facilities in Den- ver, Colo. or Palp Alto, Calif. Barnun's present condition rules out such a move however, unless it is absolutely necessary. Another facet of the opera- tion which has doctors worried concerns the post-operative stage of the transplant. As far as the mechanics of the operation go," said a hos- pital spokesman,"they can take them (hearts) out and put them in again all day. The big prob- lem is to prevent the body from attacking this new heart and rejecting i. In order to combat this na- tural phe tomnenon of rejection in previous transplants, doctors have used drugs thatvastly inhibit the body's' ability to fight off foreign substances. rAt the' same' time, however, rejection of normal viruses and infections is also inhibited. Thus the patient is tremendously vulnerable to the simplest dis- ease. Many of the first trans- plant patients eventually died from infections unrelated to the transplant. Recently however, doctors have found that a drug called anti-lymphocyte globulin (ALG) helps prevent rejection of the new organ while reducing the possibility of infection to a min- imum. At a recent conference of heart surgeons who had p e r- formed transplants, many said they would not attempt a trans- plant 'without ALG. Among these was Dr. Denton A. Cooley of Baylor- University who has performed eight transplants. Two of Dr. Cooley's patients have recovered so well they are now out of the, hospital and back to work. The problem facing the uni- versity team stems from the fact that ALG has been banned from interstate shipment until it receives approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Thus, although the drug has been used successfully injHous- ton and Colorado, doctors here must develop their own supply, a long and tedious process ac- cording to hospital sources. The status of the operation then, is one full of ironics, fears and apprehensions. Ironic that an operation that perhaps represents the ultimate in hu- man medicine, using tissues from the body of one no longer able to use them in rder ot give life to another, may be foiled by the recipient body, which wants to reject this organ that will give it a chance for life. Or perhaps a donor will not be found in time, and yet an- other patient will die in the "waiting 'room." Perhaps one will be found, tomorrow, before the doctors can finish making a supply of ALG. What ever the case, 22 of University Hospital's best have prepared as well as humanly possible to take advantage of any chance in the face of great odds. Earnings of U.S.famiies increasing The upward trend in income whichhas characterized the American economy in the past few years is continuing, reports the University's Survey Research Center. About 63 per cent of the ap- proximately 60 million family units in the country report that they are making more than four years ago and 49 per cent that they are making more th-an one year ago. At the same time, two out of five family units expect to make more a year from now and fully half expectnto make more four years from now. The figures are reported in the "1967 Survey of Consumer 'Fi- nances," a 362-page book publish- ed by the Institute for Social Research. Of particular interest is the large proportion of families which both experienced and expected rising income, according to the SRC report by economists George Katona, James N. Morgan, Jay Schmiedeskamp, and John A. Sonquist. Those who are making; more than they did four years, ago and also expect to make more four years from now compose 40 per, cent of all families. Sirn Is'Interviewing on Campus UCST3WE NEED SALESMEN The Michigan Daily is one of the few financia ly independent college newspapers in the nation. We have achieved this status by selling thousands of dollars worth of advertising annually, but we are not satisfied. The growth of the city of Ann Arbor offers us an unlimited potential for our own growth. We are ready to meet this challenge, liiit -9- - /I Among upper income families- those who make over $10,000 a year before taxes-this proportion is as high as 54 per cent, and among younger families--those with the head under 45 years of age=A-even 60 per cent. Past as, well as expected income increases are most frequent among families headed by younger, well-educated persons. An analysis of change in the distribution of income, financial assets, as well as major expendi- tures over the last few years in- dicates some progress inythe war against poverty. --- - ENTS STUD Starting this September the Daily will have ?a I i m ited number 'of CUSTOM SANDALS Individually Fitted and Designed 213 EWStyleshnlgn$15.00 6 9 ~ i 218 E. W ashington 663-9400 +.c ) Ct t .C) " !) ("' ) o _ : ~ ) ( openings for people who, can sel I advertising. Fay ir iI be on a com- mission basis! 420 MAYNARD ST. «I I - SPECIAL RATES FOR WEEKENDS I I 438 W. Huron 663-2033 ! 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