Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center adopts ‘Heart-in-a-Box’ technology

Listen to this article

Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center has adopted Heart-in-a-Box technology to expand donor heart availability and improve transplant outcomes.

The Medical Center performed its first heart transplant using a new cardiac preservation technology that keeps donor hearts pumping outside the body, marking a step forward in expanding donor availability and improving patient outcomes, according to a release. Known as the TransMedics Organ Care System – or “Heart‑in‑a‑Box” – the system allows surgeons to maintain and assess the heart during transport, potentially increasing the number of viable transplants. 

“This technology is a significant advancement for our heart transplant program,” Dr. John Boehmer, director of the Advanced Heart Failure Transplant Program at Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, said in a statement. “The ability to monitor the heart while it is functioning outside the body allows our team to make more informed decisions and accept organs that previously have not been considered, ultimately giving more patients a second chance at life.” 

The technology allows donor hearts to be transported while beating and functioning outside the body, unlike the more traditional cold storage. Maintaining the heart in a warm, oxygenated state, helps clinicians to better assess organ function and extend the time the heart is outside the body. The device allows Milton S. Hershey Medical Center to evaluate and recover donor hearts from greater distances, increasing the number of organs available for patients waiting for a donor heart and reducing the likelihood that viable hearts are declined because of distance or time constraints. 

Dr. Balakrishnan Mahesh, cardiac and transplant surgeon, performed the team’s first heart transplant using a donor heart procured with the Heart-in-a-Box on Marion Lehman, of Cogan Station, Pa., who is recovering well following the procedure. This technology enabled the surgical team to extend travel time for donor heart procurement to over three hours. 

The case marked Milton S. Hershey Medical Center’s first donation after circulatory death (DCD), representing an important advancement in expanding the donor pool for patients with advanced heart failure, per the release. DCD heart donation involves recovering hearts after the heart stops and circulatory function has ceased. Advanced organ preservation technology, like Heart-in-a-Box, allows transplant teams to evaluate and preserve these donor hearts in new ways, creating additional opportunities for transplantation.