"Surreal" double hand transplant gives "new lease of life" to man with rare autoimmune condition
Dad of three Steven Gallagher had the operation in Leeds in December, after he lost the use of his hands to scleroderma
A dad of three whose hands were left unusable by a rare autoimmune disease is believed to have had the world's first double hand transplant for the condition.
Steven Gallagher from North Ayrshire in Scotland was diagnosed with scleroderma 13 years ago- which causes scarring of the skin and internal organs, after he developed an unusual rash on his cheeks and nose and pains in his right arm.
Doctors initially said it could be lupus, then thought it was carpal tunnel syndrome and he underwent an operation but the pain returned.
The condition affected areas including his nose, mouth and hands and, about seven years ago, his fingers started curling in until they were in a fist position and he was suffering "horrendous" pain.
He said: "My hands started to close, it got to the point where it was basically two fists, my hands were unusable, I couldn't do a thing apart from lift things with two hands.
"I could not grab anything, it was a struggle to get dressed and things like that.
"I thought that's a space age kind of thing"- Gallagher
48-year-old Gallagher underwent the 12 hour operation in Leeds in six months ago but initially dismissed the idea.
"When Professor Hart in Glasgow mentioned to me about a double hand transplant, at the time I laughed and thought that's space age kind of things but, after thinking about it for a wee while, I spoke more to Professor Hart, and I went down to Leeds and spoke to Professor Kay.
"They were really understanding and were really open about what might happen, that I could lose my hands altogether, they said it was unlikely but it was a risk.
"My wife and I spoke about it and came to the agreement to go for it. I could end up losing my hands anyway, so it was just a case of letting them know I was going to go with it."
Mr Gallagher, who has three daughters aged 12, 24 and 27, spent about four weeks in Leeds General Infirmary following the operation and has regular visits to hospitals in Glasgow for physiotherapy and monitoring.
He added: "It has given me a new lease of life. I'm still finding things hard just now but things are getting better every week with the physio and the occupational therapists, everything is just slowly getting better.
"The pain is the big thing. The pain before the operation was horrendous, I was on so much pain relief it was unbelievable, but now I've no pain at all."
"Huge effort" from team in Leeds
The surgery involved a 30-strong team of professionals from many disciplines.
Professor Simon Kay, of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "This operation has been a huge team effort with input from our colleagues here in Leeds and in Glasgow.
"Having a hand transplant is very different from a kidney or other organ transplant, as hands are something we see every day and we use them in so many ways.
"For this reason, we and our expert clinical psychologists assess and prepare patients, in order to be sure that they will be able to cope psychologically with the permanent reminder of their transplant, and the risk the body may reject the transplanted hands."
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