MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UK to pioneer controversial full face transplant

British surgeons could perform the world's first full face transplant within months after being given the go-ahead. Consultant surgeon Peter Butler was granted permission for the pioneering surgery by the ethics committee at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, north London.

Dr Butler, who has been researching the plan for years, said he was "delighted" by the news. He said he hoped the operation could be performed within "a year", but insisted it was not a race.

Simon Weston, who suffered severe facial burns in the Falkland Islands war and is patron of the Face Trust said he fully supported plans to carry out the world's first full face transplant.

"I'm absolutely delighted for Peter Butler and his team. I'm so pleased for them, if ever a man deserved a bit of luck with his career, it's him" said Weston.

"He has worked so hard on this for 14 years and has put a lot of money into this to make it a realistic proposition".

Butler said: "I feel delighted that we have got the go-ahead. It's been a long journey but this is just the beginning, really. The most important part of the process starts now, which is selection of the patients."

As the news broke, the speed of the decision was criticized by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS). Its working party is looking at the issue and will release a report with full recommendations next month.

The hospital's ethics committee is an independent body and is free to make its decision without consulting the RCS.

In a statement, the RCS said: "The College still has grave concerns about face transplantation, and will continue to advocate a cautious approach, but in the light of research over the last three years, and more recent evidence, the working party will suggest minimum requirements that must be fulfilled before a unit or institution should contemplate undertaking facial transplantation. We would urge the trust not to allow this surgery to proceed until that review has taken place."

Dr Butler's team has been approached by 34 patients from all over the world but he wants more people to come forward now approval has been granted. His team will choose four patients from the UK or Ireland for staged operations, possibly six months apart.

The patients are all likely to have pan-facial disfigurement - which means the whole face has been affected by injury, such as severe burns spreading to the scalp or ears.