BATON ROUGE — A 21-hour operation transplanted a donor larynx in a 59-year-old patient with cancer and hampered the ability to talk, swallow and breathe. 

Fifteen years of research prepared the Mayo Clinic to transplant its first larynx, commonly known as a voice box. Here, the transplant team is practicing microsurgery techniques developed through research, connecting the donor organ to nearly invisible blood vessels. The study of how to prevent organ rejection took more research, so the team also tested medicines called immunosuppressants.

"Our aim is to restore the function of the larynx from a variety of different means. The larynx is important because it regulates our ability to breathe, regulates our ability to swallow, and protects our airway when we swallow, so food doesn't go down into our lungs,” head and neck surgeon David Lott said.

The procedure is a composite neck transplant. Along with the larynx, the team transplanted nearby organs and tissue, including the thyroid gland, pea-size parathyroid glands and pharynx, also known as the throat, upper esophagus, upper trachea and skin. It's a surgery with special challenges that is done through the strict human protection guidelines of a clinical trial.

"And so, if you look at the immune environment, there are very different immune needs and immunosuppressive needs,” Lott said.

The research team will follow the patient in his post-transplant care for the rest of the patient’s life.

"What we're looking to see is, what sort of quality of life has the patient restored with this transplant? How well is the larynx functioning? What sort of quality of life has the patient restored with this sort of transplant?” Lott said.