Medical achievements, medals and awards… “We are proud that she is from Lebanon”

It is true that what the medical sector in Lebanon is witnessing is worth stopping at. We can simply notice this as a result of the treatments and medical achievements that have left their mark in this field, despite the bumps and human tragedies that still dominate newspaper headlines, news bulletins and social media sites. It is more like an up and down movement. Sometimes we raise our voices about a medical error, negligence, death or failure to receive a patient, and sometimes we write proudly about an achievement in a treatment or a disease that is praised in the region and the world.

In a tour of the most important medical events, we stop at some stations that constituted a qualitative shift in the level of medicine in Lebanon and made it advanced on the health map.

The first successful lung transplant surgery in Lebanon and the region

In December, the American University of Beirut Hospital witnessed the first lung transplant surgery in Lebanon and the region. The operation was performed by the assistant surgeon in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Dr. Jamil Burji, and was assisted by the Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Dr. Pierre Sfeir. The patient (42 years old) had been receiving treatment for more than 10 years due to her suffering from bronchiectasis and chronic lung infections. The cause of this health condition is due to genetic factors, but in the last two years, her lung functions have completely stopped, which has forced her to remain on an oxygen machine to stay alive.

The first successful lung transplant surgery in Lebanon and the region

Lebanese doctor performs surgery on 3-year-old boy, saving him from paralysis

La Timone-Enfants Children’s Hospital in France witnessed the first surgical operation in France and the world using a CT scanner, led by pediatric orthopedic and spine surgeon Dr. Elie Choufani. The 3-year-old child suffers from a congenital deformity and his condition was critical due to the risk of paralysis if rapid medical intervention was not provided.

The 5-hour operation was successful without complications, and the child is in good health today. It was a delicate surgery but it succeeded in saving the child from paralysis.

Lebanese doctor performs surgery on 3-year-old boy, saving him from paralysis

A Lebanese achievement in America… A Lebanese doctor invents a medicine to treat kidney cysts after his father suffered from the disease!

It was not easy for the doctor and researcher, Shabib, to see his father fighting this disease for many years. He turned this suffering into a global Lebanese achievement by inventing a medicine to treat kidney cysts. To this day, there is no medicine for this disease. But for the first time, there will be hope for kidney cyst patients thanks to a new medicine invented by the Lebanese doctor, Shabib. The new medicine blocks a hormone called “Vasopressin” and thus prevents the cyst from enlarging and growing inside the kidney.

A Lebanese achievement in America… A Lebanese doctor invents a medicine to treat kidney cysts after his father suffered from the disease!

Lebanese Doctor Leads Neurosurgery in the United States

A surgeon of Lebanese origin has taken the throne of neurosurgery and brain surgery at the second largest hospital in the United States, Jackson Memorial – Miami, becoming a global reference and a destination for those seeking healing through his advanced and successful surgeries.

In this governmental hospital, which operates through a cooperation agreement with the University of Miami and has 1,600 beds, the neurosurgeon, Professor Jacques Morcos, holds the position of President of the World Association of Neurosurgeons of Lebanese Origin (WALN), Director of the American Society for Skull Base Surgery, and Head of the Department of Neurosurgery at the hospital.

Lebanese Doctor Leads Neurosurgery in the United States

Implanting a wire-free battery for heartbeats without surgery!

The Cardiac Electrophysiology Team at the American University of Beirut Medical Center performed a new, unique operation, which is being performed for the first time in Lebanon, by implanting a battery to regulate the heartbeat without surgical intervention. The operation took between 15-20 minutes.

The first pacemaker was implanted in the right ventricle via a venous catheter in the thigh, without the need for additional wires, which had a significant positive impact in eliminating the complications caused by old batteries, most importantly eliminating to a large extent the infections associated with sinusitis, wires, and other complications.

For the first time in Lebanon… implanting a wire-free battery for heartbeats without surgery!

The first successful uterus transplant in Lebanon

On June 21, 2018, Lebanon, specifically Bellevue Medical Center, witnessed the first uterus transplant in Lebanon and the Middle East and North Africa region as part of a scientific research program, performed by a Lebanese medical team in cooperation with a specialized Swedish medical team led by Professor Mats Brannstrom and Lebanese physician Randa Akouri. This Lebanese achievement has achieved global success, as there are 10 centers in the world that perform this type of surgery. The hysterectomy took about 12 hours and the transplant took 6 hours.

The first successful uterus transplant in Lebanon… Reham found relief after 6 years of suffering (Video)

A Lebanese academic medical achievement in France

An academic medical achievement that allows Lebanese medical students to pursue a full specialization in France with a French degree. An achievement worked on by the Head of the Gynecology Department at Foch Hospital in Paris, Professor Jamal Al-Ayoubi, and the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Paris Occidental, Professor Anan Jilali.

In the past, non-French medical students were only allowed to pursue one or two years of their specialization in French hospitals and universities, without obtaining a French specialization certificate. Today, however, the doors have been opened to completing a full or partial specialization with a certificate.

Al-Ayyoubi to Al-Nahar: A project that allows Lebanese medical students to complete their full specialization in French universities

Lebanese Doctor Khedr Faqih Saves 16-Year-Old Boy from Death…6 Hours to Remove Malignant Tumor and Implant New Jaw

Once again, a medical achievement has been recorded with a Lebanese imprint. This time, the destination was Eastern Europe, where Lebanese doctor Khedr Faqih and a medical team removed a malignant tumor from the face of a 16-year-old boy and implanted a new jaw using 3D technology.

6 hours in the operating room during which doctors succeeded in saving the boy’s life, who regained his normal life in five days. The technique relies on rebuilding the lost areas with millimeter accuracy, reconstructing the jaw, straightening the organs, and building new cells. This is considered the first achievement of its kind thanks to modern technologies for medical progress in this field.

Lebanese Doctor Khedr Faqih Saves 16-Year-Old Boy from Death…6 Hours to Remove Malignant Tumor and Implant New Jaw

A Lebanese researcher scientifically confirms the relationship between high blood pressure, heart disease and sodium levels

A Canadian university researcher of Lebanese origin, Professor Ghassan Bakili, shed light on the details of the problem of chronic high sodium in the blood and its connection to calcium, which is vital for the arteries. High sodium in the cells leads to the accumulation of calcium in them, which leads to high blood pressure and serious diseases in the heart and arteries.

The scientist and researcher in heart tissue cells and vessels, Baqili, has many researches and publications in many international biological and medical journals, and he also has books that serve as a reference for scientists and researchers in heart diseases.

This research has paved the way for the development of new treatments, some of which have now been approved for use, and others are under development and studies for approval and will be used later. The results of some of his research have also led to the approval of a new drug to treat muscular dystrophy in children suffering from Duchenne and Becker diseases, which are two genetic diseases that affect boys.

A Lebanese researcher scientifically confirms the relationship between high blood pressure, heart disease and sodium levels

Best Thesis and Research Award for Studying Atherosclerosis for Lebanese Researcher Dr. Ali Nehme

The Francophone Society of Atherosclerosis in France awarded the Best Thesis and Research Award on the Study of Atherosclerosis for the year 2015 to the Lebanese researcher Dr. Ali Nehme, who completed his doctorate in “Pathophysiology and Bioinformatics” at the University of Lyon, France, under the supervision of Dr. Kazem Zibara from the Faculty of Sciences at the Lebanese University, who specializes in genetics and arterial diseases, and Dr. Jean-Pierre Brica from the University of Lyon, France.

The results of a recent comprehensive study on hardened arteries at the DNA, protein and metabolic levels will allow for the discovery of new, more effective drugs to treat this deadly disease. The study was conducted by Lebanese researcher Dr. Ali Nehme and won an international award for best scientific research.

Best Thesis Award for Dr. Ali Nehme: Paving the Way for Effective Treatments for Atherosclerosis

A global achievement led by a Lebanese doctor

She is famous for giving motherhood to a Swedish woman without a uterus, after she performed the first-of-its-kind uterus transplant in cooperation with a large team of doctors and researchers at the Swedish Gothenburg University Hospital. She is the researcher and Dr. Randa Rasho Aqouri, a specialist in obstetrics, gynecology and infertility.

During her medical career full of discoveries and achievements, she won awards for the best uterus transplant research from several countries such as Sweden, China, Portugal, America and Tunisia. She also received two honorary shields from the Lebanese state and its embassy in Sweden.

The dream of motherhood came true with her… a global achievement starring a Lebanese doctor (video)

Treating eye cancer with radiation without removing it for the first time in Lebanon!

The specialist in ophthalmology and retinal tumors, Dr. Hassan Abdel Aziz, with an integrated medical team with high experience and professionalism, succeeded in performing the first radiological operation in Lebanon without removing the eye. Brachy Therapy is the latest development in the treatment of melanoma cancer that affects the eye.

Lebanese scientific achievement in combating lung cancer

Scientific research conducted by Dr. George Nimr, a professor at the Faculty of Medicine at the American University of Beirut, and Dr. Athar Khalil (who recently completed her doctoral thesis at the Faculty of Medicine at the American University) revealed a link between four new genetic chromosomes and the incidence of lung cancer, which is considered the most deadly cancer in humans.

Laboratory research conducted at the American University laboratories has shown a link between four genetic markers TBX2, TBX3, TBX4, and TBX5 and lung cancer. The scientific results showed that the expression of these genetic markers is absent or reduced in cancerous lung cells compared to normal cells.

Lebanese scientific achievement in combating lung cancer

French Legion of Honor, Knight rank, awarded to Professor Jamal Al-Ayyoubi

Researcher and professor at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of France and head of the Department of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Infertility at the University Hospital of Paris West in France for 15 years. A Lebanese leading the womb transplant revolution, Professor Jamal Al-Ayoubi has nearly 150 publications in international medical scientific journals that have contributed to the advancement of medicine.

The French Republic awarded him the French Legion of Honor, the highest French decoration, in recognition of his comprehensive work and distinguished humanitarian character. Recently, he achieved important results in the field of successful fertility cases at the Foch Medical Center, which he headed, to become the most important center in France and one of the most important centers in Europe.

A Lebanese Leads the Womb Transplant Revolution… Professor Jamal Al-Ayoubi: “The Rooster Crows and Your Lord Brings Out the Light”

Award from the US National Institutes of Health for Lebanese Professor Pierre Zalloua

Once again, Lebanon has recorded a scientific achievement for a Lebanese research thesis that succeeded in attracting the attention of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US health services agency responsible for research related to biomedicine and health, despite the high competition from all over the world.

The research proposal addresses the problem of the impact of forced displacement on the incidence and development of type 2 diabetes among refugees. It took the geneticist a full year to prepare the research thesis and another 4 months to write it and submit it to the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

A new Lebanese achievement: An award from the US National Institutes of Health for Lebanese Professor Pierre Zalloua

The first percutaneous mitral valve replacement in the Middle East

The cardiology team at the Department of Internal Medicine at the American University of Beirut Medical Center performed the region’s first non-surgical percutaneous mitral valve replacement (PVMV) procedure. Percutaneous mitral valve replacement (PVMV) is a unique and advanced procedure that offers new options for patients who cannot tolerate repeated open-heart surgeries.

The first percutaneous mitral valve replacement in the Middle East

For the first time in Lebanon… Endoscopic surgery performed inside the nose to remove a tumor in the optic nerve

For the first time in Lebanon, the Department of Surgery at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC) performed an endoscopic endonasal surgery to remove an optic nerve tumor extending into the superior orbital fissure. This advanced procedure saved the life of a five-year-old girl who came to the medical center with a tumor on her optic nerve extending into the superior orbital fissure.

This procedure, which is the first of its kind, allows the surgeon to remove tumors inside the brain and in the upper part of the spine without the need to make large incisions or remove parts of the skull, which contributed to a quick recovery and reduced pain during recovery.

For the first time in Lebanon… Endoscopic surgery performed inside the nose to remove a tumor in the optic nerve

Order of the British Empire for a Lebanese doctor

Lebanese doctor Nadine Hachach has been awarded the OBE for her achievements in surgery and in promoting the use of technology. The OBE is one of the highest honours awarded in the UK for achievements in public life and contributions to society.

In 2017, Forbes Middle East named Hashash one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the Arab World, and she was a lecturer at Tedwomen 2017 and other scientific conferences.