The US approves organ transplants from HIV-infected patients

Previously, a transplanted kidney from an HIV patient to another HIV patient was performed in South Africa and it has also been shown to save lives of transplant recipients.

The Johns Hopkins College of Medicine has just received a "nod" from the US government on the issue of liver and kidney transplantation of an HIV-infected patient for another person who is also identified as having positive test results. with HIV. This surgery will be performed as soon as the recipient and the donor undergo a medical examination like other transplant surgeries.

This is the first time HIV-infected patients can donate organs for new organ transplants in people with similar conditions, previously the US law never allows this to happen because of many Different reasons. According to experts' estimates, removing such legal barriers will save 1000 lives every year when up to 600 HIV-infected patients are willing to participate in donating their organs.

This is the first time HIV-infected patients can donate organs.

Surgeon Dorry Segev said: "This may be one of the biggest steps in the organ transplant surgery industry in the last decade." He is also the co-author of HOPE Act 2013 on the issue of allowing HIV-infected patients to participate in organ donation, President Barack Obama himself approved this law.

After two years of completing other legal procedures, John Hopkins Hospital was chosen by the US Organ Sharing Network, the first site to carry out this historic surgery. In addition, Dr. Segev also emphasized that this is a second chance of life for HIV-infected patients who are at the end of their organ diseases.

In fact, the issue of organ transplants from HIV patients to other HIV patients has been proposed since 1988 but immediately it was outlawed because the life of these parts is often very short under the HIV virus. However, HIV-infected patients have been able to live longer than ever thanks to the emergence of pharmaceuticals dealing with this virus.

For this reason, doctors believe that they have the right to participate in organ donation as normal people when there are still many other HIV-infected people with at least 1 more disease for internal organs and sources of donated organs are not always redundant.

In addition, Dr. Segev shared his motivation to create the HOPE Act: "Previously, we had a list of more than 120,000 HIV-infected patients diagnosed with kidney failure or liver failure that should be replaced. In the meantime, the internal organs of other HIV patients have not been mentioned because of legal problems, if ordinary people can donate organs to Helping others is why HIV patients cannot do so to less fortunate people. "

The issue of organ transplantation from HIV patient to another HIV patient has been proposed since 1988.

Previously, a transplanted kidney from an HIV patient to another HIV patient was performed in South Africa and it has also been shown to save lives of transplant recipients. The biggest problem faced by doctors now is that these transplants can make recipients face a greater risk of getting a dangerous strain of HIV than the HIV strain they themselves are infected with.

Researchers from John Hopkins Hospital said they would be very cautious in determining the HIV strain in both patients and using some HIV suppressive drugs if necessary. This is also the reason that doctors will focus on donated organs from deceased HIV patients, in addition to the lack of necessary studies that will make this first surgery take place at one speed. extremely slow.

Even so, Dr. Segev remarked that if he and his colleagues were to overcome this first challenge, the problem would have spread rapidly. Currently, HIV patients are still suffering from a significant stigma from society because many people believe that being infected with HIV will become a burden and cannot help others, the HOPE Act can replace completely change this position.