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Policy Changes Fail to Improve Pediatric Heart Transplant Survival

Researchers have determined that changes to wait-list rules for heart transplants have not enhanced survival rates for infants and children. They conclude that the current prioritization system fails to adequately prioritize the sickest patients, attributing any reduction in mortality to improvements in medical care rather than to changes in wait-list policy.

Ending Race-Based Test Helps Black Kidney Patients

Thousands of Black patients awaiting kidney transplants were advanced on the waiting list after the discontinuation of a specific test. This shift not only benefitted these patients but may also have wider implications for addressing racial inequity in the medical field.

Evaluation Procedure Aims to Make More Donor Lungs Available

To increase the availability of organs, Mayo Clinic Transplant Center is utilizing ex vivo lung perfusion, a procedure that allows surgeons to assess donor lungs for circulation, oxygenation, and compliance with enhanced sensitivity and specificity.

CDC Study Warns on Infection-Related Cancers After Organ Transplant

Cases of suspected Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infections in U.S. organ transplant recipients jumped in the last five years, highlighting the need for new screening tools and sharper clinical scrutiny in transplant patients, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

Safety and Efficacy of Liver Transplantation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma With Bile Duct Tumor Thrombus

The prognosis for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and bile duct tumor thrombus is poor, and there are no established treatment guidelines for this condition. The long-term outcomes of liver transplantation for these patients are uncertain, leaving the appropriateness of this therapy in question.

Kidney Transplant Rates From Brain, Circulatory Death Donors Now Nearly Equal

Three-quarters of kidney transplants in the U.S. come from deceased donors, and donation after circulatory death, in contrast to brain death, now accounts for 45% of all deceased kidney donor transplants, according to study data.

Surprising Culprit Leads to Chronic Rejection of Transplanted Lungs, Hearts

Despite advances in the field of organ transplantation, long-term organ rejection that can become apparent a decade or more after a heart or lung transplant remains a common problem for patients. This chronic organ failure has long been attributed exclusively to the recipient's immune system attacking the foreign organ over time

Dual Therapy Trial Hints at Freedom From Daily Transplant Drugs

A pilot trial tested a dual biologic regimen that may reduce reliance on daily immunosuppressants for kidney transplant recipients. Early findings suggest some patients avoided oral medications for a full year. Researchers say the approach could shift treatment toward episodic therapy.

Malignancy of Urinary Tract in Kidney Transplant Recipients

Cancer is increasingly prevalent as a cause of death in kidney transplant patients, who are at higher risk of developing malignancies due to immunosuppressive therapy compared to the general population. Recurrence of previous cancers can also occur in some patients. Urinary tract malignancies are the most frequently encountered neoplasms in this population.

Intravenous Immunoglobulin In Solid-Organ Transplantation

The survival of kidney and lung allografts continues to be threatened by sensitization, donor-specific antibody formation and antibody-mediated rejection. Intravenous immunoglobulin has been incorporated into 3 major clinical contexts central to transplant medicine: desensitization before transplantation, treatment of antibody-mediated rejection, and replacement or adjunctive therapy for post-transplant hypogammaglobulinemia or increased risk for infection.

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