Dr. Shaf Keshavjee, Senior Scientist at TGHRI and Chief of Innovation at UHN, has received the prestigious Medawar Prize. This award, one of the highest honours in the field of organ transplantation, recognizes outstanding investigators whose work has significantly influenced the field.
Dr. Keshavjee's transformative work includes the development of a lung preservation solution, LDP, now the global standard for lung preservation, and the Toronto Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion (EVLP) system, which has doubled the number of lungs available for transplant.
In 2008, Dr. Keshavjee led the development of the EVLP system at UHN. This innovative technology allows donor lungs to be maintained outside the body in a state that mimics natural conditions, supplying them with oxygen and nutrients. This process, lasting up to 12 hours, enables accurate assessment, treatment and repair of donor prior to transplantation. By 2011, EVLP was fully approved and funded as a clinical therapy, revolutionizing clinical lung transplantation.
The EVLP system has had a profound and far-reaching impact, significantly increasing the number of viable donor lungs, improving lung health post-transplant, and reducing rejection rates. Leading transplant centers worldwide have adopted this system. This concept is now being expanded to other organs at UHN and worldwide.
Currently, Dr. Keshavjee's research focuses on understanding molecular mechanisms of lung preservation, injury, and repair. His team at UHN is developing diagnostics and therapies, including gene therapy and genome editing technologies like CRISPR-Cas9, to further enhance the EVLP system's lung repair capabilities.
In addition to his research roles, Dr. Keshavjee is the Director of the Toronto Lung Transplant Program within UHN’s Ajmera Transplant Centre and Sprott Department of Surgery, Director of the Latner Thoracic Laboratories, and Professor of Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto. His leadership and innovations have not only advanced the field of lung transplantation but have also brought new hope to patients worldwide.
The Medawar Prize, awarded biennially at The Transplantation Society's Congresses since 1990, will be official presented to Dr. Keshavjee in September 2024.
For more information on the Medawar Prize and other recipients past and present, click here.
To read more about the 1000th Ex-Vivo Lung Perfusion transplantation surgery, click here.
The TorEx EVLP system is shown above. The EVLP System maintains donor lungs outside the body; in March 2024, UHN celebrated the 1000th EVLP transplantation surgery. (Photo: Dr. Shaf Keshavjee).