Surgery

The success rate of heart transplants has profoundly improved since the first transplant performed in 1967, and thanks to continuing advances in immunosuppressive therapy and surgical techniques, most transplant patients can look forward to having a healthy heart for many years.

The Cardiac Transplantation Program at Carolinas Heart Institute was instituted in 1986 with the first cardiac transplant performed by Dr. Francis Robicsek. Shortly thereafter, the Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute (formerly known as Carolinas Heart Institute) was named the first Medicare-approved cardiac transplant center in North Carolina. Our program was the first center in North Carolina to perform 200 cardiac transplants. In 2010, Sanger celebrated the 25th anniversary of the heart transplant program, with more than 470 transplants performed to date.