In 1961, Dr. Norman Shumway and Dr. Richard Lower were also working on heart transplantation at Stanford. They had been successful in performing it in dogs using Cyclosporine.
In 1967, Dr. Christian Barnard, who had studied with Dr. Shumway, performed the first human heart transplantation in South Africia. This was sadly not successful. The first North American transplant was performed in 1968 by Dr. Shumway.
Between 1968 and 1970, several surgeons tried to perfect heart transplantation but it was very challenging and several patients died.
In 1970, using the correct dose of Cyclosporine they were finally successful and thereafter heart transplantation has become a standard therapy for end stage heart failure.
