Kidney Transplant News and Research

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A kidney transplant is an operation where a healthy kidney from one person (the donor) is transferred to a person who has little or no kidney function (the recipient).

Better use of kidneys from deceased donors

Several new studies suggest how transplant surgeons can make more effective use of kidneys from deceased donors – even those that are at the outer limits of acceptance criteria – according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

2 Oct 2007

Researchers uncover likely source of rejection for otherwise well-matched kidney transplants

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers, collaborating with colleagues in Germany, have for the first time identified antibodies associated with transplant rejection of otherwise healthy kidneys.

27 Sep 2007

UCLA Medical Center performs its first living donor kidney swap

UCLA Medical Center on Sept. 20 performed its first living donor kidney “swap,” a procedure in which a loved one of a kidney transplant patient who is not compatible as a donor exchanges organs with another incompatible pair under an innovative new paired donation program.

27 Sep 2007

Organ transplantation for HIV-positive patients

Not long ago, organ transplantation was not considered an option for HIV infected patients.

17 Sep 2007

3,000 kidney transplants performed at NYP/Weill Cornell

More than 3,000 lives have been saved through the kidney transplant program at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and its medical partner The Rogosin Institute.

2 Sep 2007

Fingolimod shows promise in 2 lethal leukemias

A new study suggests that an experimental drug being tested for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and to prevent organ rejection might also help people with certain deadly forms of chronic and acute leukemia.

29 Aug 2007

Immune deficiency linked to squamous cell eye cancer

The incidence of squamous cell eye cancer is greater among kidney transplant patients and people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) than the general public, which suggests the disease is associated with immune deficiency.

16 Aug 2007

Living donor swap for kidney transplants

New and innovative programs to obtain donor organs have the potential to revolutionize kidney transplantation.

13 Aug 2007

Staggering costs of end-stage renal disease in U.S.

Recent progress in the prevention and treatment of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in the United States give reason for "cautious optimism," but skyrocketing costs are a major concern, according to a Special Article in the October Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

12 Aug 2007

First mouse model of lung transplantation

Lung transplants have been performed successfully for more than 20 years in humans but never before in mice – until now.

12 Jul 2007

Cancer risk in HIV, transplant patients

HIV/AIDS and kidney transplant patients are at much greater risk of contracting 20 different types of cancer than the general population, according to a land mark paper in The Lancet.

8 Jul 2007

Gene found that protects from serious kidney disease

A combination of mice and patient studies sheds light on cause and possible new therapies of kidney diseases.

8 Jul 2007

Link between ciliary signaling and cancer

Submarines have periscopes. Insects have antennae. And increasingly, biologists are finding that most normal vertebrate cells have cilia, small hair-like structures that protrude like antennae into the surrounding environment to detect signals that control cell growth.

29 Jun 2007

Gel capsule for diabetes type 1

There is renewed hope for treatment of diabetes type 1 with gel capsules: Biotechnologists at The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) have developed a new type of alginate capsule that could solve the problem of the body's immune system recognizing and attacking alien, implanted insulin cells.

23 Jun 2007

New method for matching living kidney donors with kidney disease patients

Computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon University have developed a new computerized method for matching living kidney donors with kidney disease patients that can increase the number of kidney transplants, and save lives.

14 Jun 2007

Transforming kidney transplant policy

A new article published in American Journal of Transplantation examines the dilemmas faced in trying to change kidney transplant policy; addressing the need to balance the benefits of immediate transplants with those to be had from waiting for a more suitable match.

18 May 2007

Machine preservation may promote more organ sharing

Preserving the kidneys of deceased older donors on a pump, as opposed to the conventional method of storing and transporting organs in a cooler, may lower hospital costs, improve initial organ function, and promote greater use and more sharing of organs, according to new research by Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

4 May 2007