[Current situation of pancreas transplantation in Japan].

Pancreas transplantation has been recognized as the best treatment for advanced type 1 diabetic patients. In Japan, we have performed 64 SPK, PAK or PTA from 62 brain-dead donors and two non-heart beating donors since the enforcement of Organ Transplant Act in 1997. In addition, 18 cases have been performed from living related donors. The patient survival, pancreas graft survival and kidney graft survival rate of the cadaveric transplantation at five years are 97.5%, 73.9% and 71.0%, respectively. The QOL of the recipients in both mental and physical aspects has been wonderfully improved leading to the happy second life. In front of the revised low in this year, the number of the donor and the transplantation are expected to increase.