Life saved in Tottori, Japan by same skin transplant treatment used for Kyoto Animation arsonist

Individual whose life was saved now in stable condition.

In July of 2019, Japanese animation giant Kyoto Animation was struck by a horrifying arson attack, leaving 36 people dead and 33 wounded. The aftermath of the arson brought in a flood of support for the victims and the studio from both domestic and international entities, but also new developments in the field of skin transplantation treatment for extensive burns.

With burns inflicted on over 93 percent of his skin, the Kyoto Animation arsonist was the subject of an experimental treatment plan where his own remaining skin was used to culture replacement skin. While the concept itself isn’t completely new, the amount of skin which had to be cultured was immense, and the knowledge gained in the process has now been used to save another man’s life via the same treatment.

On April 16, Tottori University Hospital’s Emergency and Critical Care Center succeeded in saving a middle-aged man who was in dire straits: 95 percent of his skin had sustained burns. Receiving skin grafts cultured from tissue sample of his remaining skin, the patient was able to recover despite the severity of the situation. The second success of such a novel procedure definitely marks an important milestone as Dr. Takahiro Ueda, who was the specialist in charge of the burn victim’s treatment at Tottori University Hospital, has commented: “I believe this treatment has now been objectively established given this second success.”

The patient has been taken off a ventilator and is now able to speak without extra medical assistance. While it is bittersweet knowing that this lifesaving treatment was jumpstarted from a series of operations conducted on the Kyoto Animation arsonist, here’s wishing the patient in Tottori a speedy and smooth recovery, and hopefully such treatments become increasingly accessible for burn victims in the near future.

Source: Kyodo News via Livedoor News via Jin
Top image: Pakutaso
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