Surgeons at the university medical centre Groningen (UMCG) have succeeded in giving a patient a new small intestine and a new abdominal wall.

The double transplant operation, the first of its kind in the Netherlands, took nine hours and was carried out six months ago. The news has just been made public because the risk of rejection has now diminished.

In total 19 medical staff were involved and they had practiced the operation on dead bodies, the AD reported.

The recipient is a 25-year-old woman who suffers from Crohn’s disease and has been fed by a tube for the past five years. Since the operation, she has put on 20 kilos in weight, broadcaster Nos said.