Transplant News and Research

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Novel and more effective way of testing which gene mutations cause cancer

Often cancer research goes like this: study cancerous cells in a lab dish, find mutations that appear in many of the samples, develop drugs to target proteins made by the mutated genes, and voila, new chemotherapy drugs are born. Or at least that's the hope.

12 Jun 2005

Three pancreatic islet cell transplants successfully treat type 1 diabetic woman

A Davidson woman has been successfully treated for her Type 1 diabetes through a procedure performed at Carolinas Medical Center. Paul F. Gores, M.D., has led a multi-disciplinary team through a series of three pancreatic islet cell transplants since the summer of 2003. The result is a patient who is now insulin-free.

8 Jun 2005

Baby born to woman following an ovary transplant from her sister

Doctors in St. Louis say a woman whose ovaries stopped working when she was a teenager, after an ovary transplant from her identical twin sister, has given birth to a baby girl.

8 Jun 2005

Chiron back in the news - deadlock over new lung transplant drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Agency (FDA) is still to make a desision on lung transplant treatment Pulminiq.

7 Jun 2005

Simple blood test can quickly identify type of congestive heart failure

A simple blood test can quickly identify what type of congestive heart failure (CHF) a patient has, improving diagnostic accuracy; eliminating the need for extensive diagnostic tests, such as heart muscle biopsy or exploratory surgery; and enabling the patient to be treated sooner, according to a study published in the June 7 Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

6 Jun 2005

A small kidney stone should not preclude people from being donors

Results from a Mayo Clinic study suggest that using kidneys which have kidney stones for living donor transplant has little impact on the organ's function one year later.

26 May 2005

Research provides roadmap for the development of human therapies for cytomegalovirus (CMV)

McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) researchers have defined genetic resistance to the widespread virus, cytomegalovirus (CMV)--a member of the viral group that causes some of the world's most prevalent diseases, such as herpes, chicken pox and mononucleosis.

26 May 2005

Tobacco use persists after liver transplant for alcoholic liver disease

Alcohol and tobacco often go hand-in-hand. Studies have shown that approximately 90 percent of problem drinkers also smoke or chew tobacco. But tobacco use is not adequately addressed when patients undergo liver transplantation due to alcoholic liver disease, say authors of a new report.

26 May 2005

Study shows how COX-2 inhibitors lead to heart disease

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine researchers have found additional evidence that may help explain how selective inhibitors of COX-2 might predispose individuals to heart disease and stroke.

26 May 2005

Female lung transplant recipients more likely to suffer from primary graft dysfunction

Female lung transplant recipients are significantly more likely to suffer from a type of injury to the transplanted lung called primary graft dysfunction than male lung transplant patients, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.

25 May 2005

Study shows using expanded critera donors is safe

Patients who had received livers from hepatitis B virus core antibody (HBcAb) positive (indicates prior exposure to hepatitis B) and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV) positive donors had similar graft and patient survival compared to patients who received HBcAb negative or HCV negative livers, according to a study by the University of Pittsburgh's Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute.

25 May 2005

Six deaths in transplant patients now linked to rodent virus

In the latest news on the subject, experts now believe they can link at least six deaths of organ transplant patients to a rodent virus, which raises questions about whether others may have gone undetected and whether the germ also could spread through blood transfusions.

24 May 2005

Virus from rodents kills three transplant recipients

Three transplant patients have died as a result of receiving an organ from a donor who had unknowingly been infected with a common rodent virus. A fourth patient who received a kidney from the organ donor is recovering.

24 May 2005

Long-term outcomes studied for stem cell transplant recipients

Improved techniques and supportive care have resulted in a growing number of long-term survivors of stem cell transplants, though little is known about the impact transplants have on patients’ lives long after treatment.

23 May 2005

Study finds benefits, less organ rejection using immunosuppressive combination for heart transplants

A new study led by researchers at the UCLA Heart Transplant Program showed that one particular combination using tacrolimus (TAC or PrografÒ also known as FK506) had significant anti-rejection benefits for heart transplant patients over other combinations.

22 May 2005

Allergies increase risk for corneal transplant rejection

Corneal transplant patients who suffer from eye allergies are at a significantly higher risk of transplant failure than those without allergies, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have shown.

22 May 2005

Novel way of administering an anti-cancer drug to bone-marrow transplant patients using continuous infusion

The new method achieves more predictable, stable drug levels in patients than the current method and could eventually allow doctors to more accurately adjust doses to accommodate individual differences in metabolism, thus increasing treatment effectiveness while avoiding side effects, said University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers.

20 May 2005

Infants with Krabbe disease saved by cord blood stem cells

Children with a fatal genetic disorder called Krabbe Disease can be saved and their brain development preserved if they receive stem cells from umbilical cord blood before symptoms of the disease develop, according to a study published in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

20 May 2005

Deadly baby disease can be arrested with early treatment

U.S. scientists have found that transplanting umbilical cord blood to seemingly healthy infants before they develop signs of Krabbe's disease can dramatically prolong the lives of children with the deadly genetic condition.

19 May 2005

Survival rates higher for children receiving living donor liver transplant

Children who undergo liver transplantation have better survival rates with living donor liver transplant graft than with deceased donor organ transplant, although factors other than the type of graft also are important, according to a study in the May issue of Archives of Surgery.

16 May 2005