A man in the Northeastern state of Massachusetts has regained his voice after a rare operation. Marty Kedian received a total transplant of his larynx, the organ responsible for speech, commonly called the “voice box.” Transplants of the larynx are very unusual and normally are not available to people with active cancer. Kedian is only the third person in the United States to receive a total larynx transplant. Doctors removed Kedian’s cancerous larynx and replaced it with a donated one. Surgeons at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona offered Kedian the transplant as part of a new study. The study, known as a clinical trial, aims to open the operation to more patients, including some with cancer, the most common way to lose a larynx. “People need to keep their voice,” 59-year-old Kedian told the Associated Press four months after the transplant operation. His voice sounded rough, but he was able to keep up a discussion for an hour. He added, “I want people to know this can be done.”
