Kidney transplants in U.S. becoming more common

Posted on Wed, Aug. 27, 2008
Kidney transplants in U.S. becoming more common

Kidney transplants have become more common in the United States in the past 20 years, increasing from 8,878 in 1988 to 16,626 in 2007; and from January through May 31 of this year, 6,701 transplants were performed.

Florida ranks as the fifth state with the most kidney transplants since '88 -- 12,846. Among those, 2,662 were performed at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, where ''we're using different procedures to help the patients be off dialysis,'' said Dr. Gaetano Ciancio, UM professor of surgery and urology. For example, both kidneys from a cadaver over age 55 could be used as a double transplant, and the kidneys from a year-old cadaver could be transplanted into an adult.

''Our hope is to open as many doors as possible, to emphasize the importance of supply and demand,'' said Dr. George Burke, professor of surgery at UM. ``Most of our donors have been from the deceased list, but we have a growing living donor program.''

The ideal donor, he says, would be an identical twin, in which case no immunosuppressants would be necessary, but matches can be found among spouses, distant relatives and friends, as in Austin Pence's case.

In fact, since 1988 there have been 11,923 nonbiological, unrelated living kidney donors who gave their organ to a specific individual. The number of biological donors during that time period tops 65,000.

''If it's possible to donate and be well for the rest of your life, it's a wonderful thing,'' Burke says.

http://www.miamiherald.com/277/story/660131.html