A new procedure for skin graft was tested on a 33-year-old man that had little chance to survive.

Franck, 33-year-old Parisian who was burned in 2016 was supposed to die because 95% of his body was severely burned. Luckily, the man had a twin brother. This made it possible for surgeons to experiment with a new graft procedure.

Before Franck, a patient had already been grafted with the skin of a sibling. But, their chances of survival were almost nil. The use of donor skin is typical for burn victims, but is routinely discarded after a few weeks and needs to be replaced.

Using twins has some advantage, like there skin will never be rejected. The first skin graft, taken from the healthy twin, is performed on the 7th day after Franck’s admission to the hospital.

“My body is very damaged, but I healed well. Now my face has almost nothing and I do not hurt, “says the patient, in the process of withdrawal of painkillers.

Franck Dufourmantelle is admitted to the specialized center of the Saint-Louis Hospital in Paris and after 4 months and a half, he went to a burn rehabilitation center since July. Currently, the rehabilitation is going well, the patient is walking and has returned home.

“I dumped a can in a tank that exploded in my hands, it was a flammable product. I burned for about fifteen seconds, “he recalls.

The two brothers were operated at the same time by two teams of surgeons, to achieve the immediate transfer of the skin. They took a thin skin layer of his twin (on the skull, which heals in less than a week, as well as on the back and thighs, which heal in about ten days).

“My brother suffers enormously physically,” Franck admits.

Both men are happy for their surgery and they continue their life with the terrible accident of Frank.