SEPT 2010

Dear Donation and Transplant Colleagues:

I’m sure I’m not the first nor will I be the last executive to useweather metaphors to describe changing business climates. Sinceautumn typically brings a change in temperature, allow me tobriefly address some ways MTF is weathering the changing needfor allograft tissues.

Just like the weather, allograft usage is different all over the country.The sunny news continues to be broad demand for our tissue form,Trinity Evolution—which can enhance bone growth using adultmesenchymal stem cells. Other exciting advances on the horizon arein the area of sports medicine including several novel cartilagetissue forms.

On the flip side, we continue to see uncertainty associated withFDA approval of new tissue forms and the continuing impact of astruggling economy.

A bright forecast is ahead for the MTF Research and Development Division, which continues toexplore new and innovative ways to prepare human tissue for transplant including foot and ankletissues, and “new and improved” versions of cancellous chips and DBX.

I hope you all enjoyed a sunny summer, and that you used your umbrella so infrequently, you forgotwhere it is. I know I have.

Bruce Stroever,

MTF President and CEO

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On The Shores of Lake Michigan in the Windy City...

The leadership of MTF Recovery Partners met for the annual August MTF Leadership Summit, andfocused on the climate of tissue banking. This year's Summit covered some of the highs and lows of thecurrent state of tissue banking, and how both MTF and our Recovery Partners are adapting to thechanging needs for allograft. On the highs, allograft continues to be the best option for patients facingserious sports injuries, post mastectomy breast reconstruction, hernia repairs and spine surgery.

While Bruce Stroever's State of MTF presentation is always a highlight, other highlights included acompelling presentation given by John Kim, M.D., of the Northwestern University's Feinberg School ofMedicine, who shared how the tissue form Flex HD contributes to his ability to give his breastreconstruction patients an excellent outcome with very little recovery time. He also provided afascinating case study in which he re-created an upper ear using Flex HD for a patient who had lost thetop portion of his ear.

Lloyd Jordan, CEO of Carolina Donor Services; Rich Pietrowski, CEO of Gift of Life Michigan; BarbaraGoff, Director of Tissue Recovery for LifeBanc; and Prasad Garimella, COO of OneLegacy, weregenerous and open during a panel presentation focusing on both increasing donors in the younger agebracket, reducing costs and increasing efficiencies. Their insights, actions and expertise provided somegreat take-aways for the group.

Other presentations included leadership tips for working with staff during these changing times byCarolyn Hendrickson, Ph.D., and the liabilities we face with donor screening and processing by MichaelKidney, J.D.

To reduce the stress of these challenging times,the Leadership Summit attendees spent anevening at Second City, Chicago's premiercomedy club.

Once again, the year's Leadership Summit was agreat opportunity for learning and sharing, andhighlighted the strengths of MTF and ourRecovery Partners, a leadership group that ishighly adaptable, and prepared to meet thechallenges of the future.

By guest writer, Pam Rawlins, Senior RegionalDirector, MTF

MTF Honors 2010 DonorCare Award Recipient

Thomas A. Nakagawa, M.D., has been presented the 2010 MusculoskeletalTransplant Foundation (MTF) DonorCare Award for his outstanding efforts in thesupport and care of donor families.

The DonorCare Award, sponsored by MTF and awarded biennially at the NationalKidney Foundation U.S. Transplant Games, recognizes individuals andorganizations that have demonstrated a superior commitment to donor families.

Dr. Nakagawa is a Professor of Anesthesia and Pediatrics at Wake ForestUniversity School of Medicine, and Director of Pediatric Critical Care at BrennerChildren’s Hospital, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

An internationally renowned lecturer, Dr. Nakagawa is an expert on pediatric donor management issues,and passionate in his pursuit of pediatric best practices for the patient and family at every step of thedonation process. He is especially mindful of tissue donation, guiding families to better understand thisspecial gift in appropriate cases. His principles and practice have resulted in the growth of pediatricdonation in the U.S. and abroad.

In addition to his practice, Dr. Nakagawa helped design the Butterfly Garden and Memorial Wall at theChildren’s Hospital in Norfolk, VA, where he previously practiced before joining Wake Forest. Thisgarden provides a quiet space for donor families and staff to find comfort.

Years after donation, families continue to visit the peaceful garden, find their child’s name engraved on apersonal bronze butterfly on the Memorial Wall, and reflect on their child and the recipients who weregiven the gift of life. Dr. Nakagawa additionally designed a pediatric organ donation awareness pin toremember pediatric donors, families, and the impact their gift has made on the lives of others. Familiesreceive the pin in an after-care program.

Actively involved in many areas of organ and tissue donation, Dr. Nakagawa has served on the nationalfaculty for the Breakthrough Collaborative on Organ Donation. He is a consultant to the AmericanAcademy of Pediatrics and has worked to revise the national policy statement for pediatric organdonation for transplantation. He is an active member of the UNOS/OPTN Pediatric Transplantcommittee.

A humble man, Dr. Nakagawa says he assists families in this critical phase of their lives because theydeserve care. He only wishes he could do more.

Nancy and Tom Schannepictured here two months priorto Tom's accident.

Tom taking his first stepsassisted by staff members atMagee Rehabilitation Hospital.

Says Lora Smitherman, Manager, Hospital Services at Carolina Donor Services OPO: “Dr. Nakagawa isa one-in-a-million, and the donation profession has benefited from his knowledge and compassion.”

Tissue Recipient on the Mend after Life Threatening Accident

New Jersey resident Tom Schanne was in a dirt biking accident inSeptember 2009. Although he was wearing full protective gear, hisbike hit an exposed root and he catapulted face and chest down into atree. He fractured his jaw, punctured a lung, and broke his sternum, twoof his ribs and his neck. His skull dislocated from his spine at segmentsC1 and C2. This type of cervical neck injury often referred to as “TheChristopher Reeve Injury,” can result in quadriplegia and the loss ofmany involuntary functions including the ability to breathe.Immediately following the accident, Tom was paralyzed but had briefmoments of being able to slightly move his legs.

Tom’s surgeon, Steven Yocom, M.D., performed an occipital fusionusing a tissue form called Trinity Evolution. This tissue form usesdonated human bone and viable adult stem cells to enhance bonegrowth in a number of orthopaedic procedures.

Tom took his first step once he left the trauma ICU about five weekslater. His first assisted multiple steps were taken in MageeRehabilitation Hospital of Philadelphia at six weeks.

Tom is home now and back to work, for which his family is grateful.Although he still experiences some nerve and balance issues, he is notparalyzed. His wife, Nancy, says: “This surgery gave me my husbandback, and a quality of life he would not have enjoyed had he beenconfined to a wheelchair.”

MTF filmed a short video of Tom’s story, which will be available toour recovery partners in a number of formats later this year.

Letters… We Get Thousand of Letters

Linking Lives through Letters, an MTF program that began in March 2007 to facilitate recipient-to-donorfamily communication, reached a significant milestone in June 2010 when it recorded receipt of over3,000 letters from tissue recipients thanking their donor families for the gift of tissue.

MTF encloses information in its tissue graft packaging for the transplant patient about how to write aletter of thanks to the donor family and where to send the letter. A tissue graft bar code ID is affixed tothis information so that the letter can be routed correctly.

MTF’s efforts were originally modeled after a program begun by Cyndie Colarusso, RN, BS, CPTC,CTBS, called Pathways Thank You Letter Program.

Maggie Coolican, MTF Coordinator for Donor Family Services, and her cadre of volunteers, took thelead to organize MTF’s program and ensure its growth and success. According to Coolican, “knowinghow a transplant changed or enhanced the life of the recipient or receiving a letter of thanks may helpassure the donor family that tissue donation was the right decision.”

The letters keep pouring in. Read an excerpt of one such letter below.

Dearest Family,

My deepest sympathy for your loss. I hope this letter provides some consolation to you. Iam only 30 but was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease. This is partially due toheredity and also to my time in the Army Infantry where I received two Purple Heartmedals while deployed in the current conflicts. Most notably, I was once shot whilescaling a building. The combat tours took their toll, as all of the additional gear and

weight affects the spine.

In the past two years I went from being extremely fit and active to being capable of lightactivity only. Then I underwent spinal fusion surgery using your loved one’s tissue. I’mrecovering well now. The sciatic nerve in my leg has been saved as well. Without surgery,not only would my spine be irrevocably damaged, but I would have lost my right leg.

God bless you for your sacrifice and I honor your loved one in their legacy. Your lovedone continues to change lives like my own and the lives of my family. I, too, am a donor,and hope and pray that one day, when my life on earth is done, I’ll be able to look downfrom heaven in observation of a life being changed.

Sincerely, A grateful soldier

Torres Family Honored at Team Philadelphia Donor Family Luncheon

The Torres family was co-sponsored by MTF and Gift ofLife Donor Program (GLDP) to attend the U.S. TransplantGames July 30-August 4, 2010 in Madison, Wisconsin. Thefamily honored their father, husband and brother, JamesTorres, who died August 25, 2008, and who donated skin,bone, tendons, corneas and heart valves.

The Team Philadelphia Donor Family Luncheon was heldMonday, August 2, prior to the National Donor RecognitionCeremony. Nearly 75 GLDP donor family membersattended the Games with Team Philadelphia.

Pictured at the luncheon are from left to right: Gina Reese, MTFRegional Director; James Torres’s sister Sandy; daughter Kiara (10); sons Matthew (11); and Juan (14); and wifeAida.

Serene Setting Allows Donor Families and MTF Employees to Reflect onU.S. Transplant Games

MTF was an official sponsor of the Donor FamilyHospitality Suite at the recent U.S. Transplant Games inMadison, Wisconsin. The hospitality suite overlookedLake Monona and offered donor families a serene andsupportive place to reflect on their experiences with oneanother or to take a break from activities.

MTF is honored to help financially sponsor severalfamilies to attend the U.S. Transplant Games. Inaddition to helping support the Torres family mentionedin the previous article, this year MTF also offeredfinancial support to several other families including two from Wisconsin.

Several MTF employees volunteered at this year’s games. Their experiences were summed up by PeggyProhaska Irwin, Wisconsin resident and MTF Tissue Services Donor Development Coordinator.

“While difficult to put into words the Transplant Games experience, if I had to assign one word it wouldbe grateful:

Grateful to work for an organization committed to the games and donor families;Grateful to share this experience with my colleagues who took time away from their friends andfamilies to volunteer;Grateful to be invited into the lives of special people bound by tragedy yet united by hope.”

Pictured here is a view from Monona Terrace where this year’s U.S. Transplant Games Donor Family HospitalitySuite was located.

MTF and OR Manager Announce Upcoming Articles

MTF and OR Manager, a monthly publication, will collaborate on a series of articles to assistperioperative personnel in the selection and management of bone biologics in the operating room setting.The series of articles begins with a review of the tissue donation process, the regulations and standardsthat govern the industry, and the variations between tissue banks. Future articles will cover the functionand categorization of bone biologics and present best practices for evaluation and standardizing thesetissue forms in the perioperative setting.

OR Manager, now in its 23rd year, is a monthly publication for OR decision-makers focusing on issuesrelated to managing the surgical suite. This periodical reaches over 3,200 subscribers across the UnitedStates, as well as internationally. For more information, visit http://www.ormanager.com/index.html.

Re-Living Summer Fun Contest: Name the MTF Employees

Several MTF employees took to the river in a rafting expedition prior to a recent Donor Services summermeeting. The first person who spots all the MTF employees pictured here, wins a $25 gift card. You mustsend me both the number of MTF employees in the photo and their first and last names. Email youranswers to Melinda_Lockard@mtf.org. (Note: not all the people pictured here are MTF employees.MTF river rafters are excluded from entering this contest. )