Episode # 274 • 18 Nov 2025
Techniques & Challenges in Bladder Transplant Surgery
For the first time in history, a human bladder was transplanted. Dr. Nima Nassiri (UCLA) joins Dr. Ruchika Talwar to share how his team completed this landmark operation alongside a kidney transplant. He walks through the clinical scenario, key steps in donor and recipient selection, and how years of preclinical work informed the operative approach.
Timestamps
00:00 - Introduction
02:51 - The Path to Bladder Transplant Surgery
05:00 - Scientific Challenges and Barriers
06:45 - Patient Selection and Initial Outcomes
12:28 - Quality of Life Considerations
14:18 - Performing the First Bladder Transplant
18:59 - Donor Matching
21:28 - Ethical Considerations
24:51 - Research Gaps and Future Prospects
Resources
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More about this episode
The conversation explores the broader future of bladder transplant surgery, from ethical considerations to the potential for merging bladder transplantation with tolerance-induction protocols that could one day eliminate the need for lifelong immunosuppression. Dr. Nassiri reflects on the importance of patient-first decision-making, teamwork, and careful innovation as the field moves toward new possibilities in restorative urology and transplant medicine.
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