Louth man remembered on 40th anniversary of Ireland's first heart transplant

Forty years ago a Co. Louth man made medical history. On a September day in 1985, Eddie Kelly became the first person in Ireland to undergo a heart transplant, a groundbreaking operation carried out at the Mater Hospital in Dublin. 

Though Mr Kelly sadly passed away just three months later, his courage and the generosity of his donor’s family opened the door for countless others to receive the gift of life through heart transplantation.

Under the expert team, led by Prof Freddie Wood and the late Prof Maurice Neligan, and thanks to the selflessness and generosity of his heart donor's family, Eddie Kelly received the very first transplanted heart in the country.

Current and former Mater Hospital staff, patients and their loved ones gathered this week to mark the anniversary, and to hear the story of that milestone operation, shared by Prof Freddie Wood.

The Mater Hospital said: “Today, the Mater is at the leading-edge of cardiac care and is supported in this life-saving work by you, our supporters. With your help we have funded advanced life-support equipment like ECMO and new cardiac ECHO machines, as well as supporting advanced heart failure equipment and supports for patients. More recently, we are supporting the expansion of the hospital's Coronary Care Unit, and so much more.

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“We remember everyone who has been instrumental in the evolution of heart care in the Mater - the pioneering medical teams and patients in those early days, the teams who continue to provide world-class care every day, the organ donors who give the gift of life and our supporters who make so much possible.”

“As Mary Raftery, our Director of Nursing said today, ‘Every beat, every breath and every moment matters.’"