First Penis Transplant in U.S. Injured Soldier to receive it within 12 months: scientists

The first penis transplant in the U.S. will take place within the next year, according to scientists.

Surgeons at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore are currently screening patients for the complicated procedure.

The historic first recipient will be a young soldier injured in a bomb blast in Afghanistan, where such injuries are common.

injured

“The more and more interactions we've had with the military, the more we came to find out that although people aren't talking about it much, genital injuries are a much bigger problem for a lot of people," said Dr. Damon Cooney, assistant professor of plastic and reconstructive surgery and co-clinical director of the penile transplant program.

The organ for the procedure will come from a deceased donor. Experts hope the transplant will start working within a matter of months, developing urinary function, sensation and even allowing the recipient the ability to have sex.

According to the Department of Defense Trauma Registry, an estimated 1,367 men in military service suffered wounds to the genitals in Iraq or Afghanistan from 2001 to 2013, according to The Washington Post.

"Veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have a disproportionate amount of what we call urogenital trauma — trauma to the penis or testicles — which is an unfortunate byproduct of the nature of the injuries they sustain because of things like IED explosions," Dr. Joseph Alukal, a urologist and director of male reproductive health at NYU Langone Medical Center, told CBS News.

The procedure is considered experimental and surgeons atJohns Hopkins has been given permission to perform 60 transplants, reported the New York Times. The university, which already has an active hand and face transplant program, will closely watch the results and decide whether to make it a standard treatment.

Only two penis transplants in the world have ever been documented in medical journals previously, with a 2006 failed attempt in China and a successful transplant in South Africa last year.

In June 2015, the recipient of the successful transplant, who required the surgery after losing his penis in a botched circumcision,announced that his girlfriend was pregnant.