Andreas Tzakis, liver and gastrointestinal surgery director at Miami University’s School of Medicine, expressed optimism.

HELBI

On Thursday, the Aretaio hospital announced a unanimous decision by the doctors from Greece and abroad who are attending Christodoulos, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece. Transplant surgeon Andreas Tzakis, who is professor of surgery and transplants at the university of Miami, made the announcement that the archbishop would go to the United States for a transplant. The archbishop, 68, had an intestinal lump successfully removed, but was found to have liver cancer, which his doctors want to prevent from spreading. Tzakis was optimistic about the outcome. An eminent specialist, Tzakis is fit and athletic, a wise mind in a sound body. He spoke to Helbi just before the briefing in the office of assistant professor Dionysis Voros, who performed the surgery. He explained that liver transplants have a good chance of success and that the archbishop has a strong heart, healthy lungs and kidneys. The staff of the Aretaio are at the archbishop’s side and he makes their work easier with his patience, mental strength, and his belief that God will help him recover and return to his duties. The doctors said that Christodoulos started roaming the corridors of the hospital as soon as he could get out of bed; he is eating normally and is not attached to a drip. All he takes is a few tablets that have been prescribed. Soon he will be discharged from hospital and will travel to Miami some time after August 15. Each doctor on the panel expressed his views at the briefing. Professor Christodoulos Stefanadis, president of the Aretaio, warned the media not to spread misinformation, and asked those journalists present to ask Tzakis specific questions related to the state of Archbishop Christodoulos’s health. The briefing was held at the behest of the archbishop himself, as Athens University Rector Christos Kittas, said, adding: “This is unprecedented for Greece. And today you have been fully informed – and I stress ‘fully’ – by the doctors who are charged with dealing with the problems.”