This issue provides some fascinating papers on the ethical aspects of dual organ allocation, Lung transplant immunophenotyping, frailty, and CMV. Overviews on natural antibodies and antibodies that cross react with porcine antigens educate and the fascination of ultrasound T cell microbubble complexes provide interest for everyone. Pediatric liver transplantation is a focus this month along with simultaneous liver and lung transplantation. We also retract a group of papers now seen to be derived from organs from unethical sources.
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The ISN-TTS Sister Transplant Centers Program is a joint partnership set up between ISN and The Transplantation Society (TTS) to create new kidney transplant centers and develop existing kidney transplant programs in emerging countries. This initiative encourages transplant centers to work together to increase opportunities for kidney transplant patients in developing countries.
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MOREThe TTS-ILTS Paired Transplant Centers Program is a collaboration between The Transplantation Society (TTS) and the International Liver Transplantation Society (ILTS) supporting new liver transplant programs in emerging countries.
VISIT WWW.TTS-ILTS.ORG FOR FULL DETAILSDr. Karen Keung, Editorial Fellow, Transplantation
Thomas AG, Ruck JM, Shaffer AA, et al.
Transplantation July 2019 - Volume 103 - Issue 7 - p 1504–1513
The prevalence of cognitive impairment in end stage renal disease is high and associated with poor outcomes on dialysis. In this prospective, longitudinal 2-centre study of 864 kidney transplant (KT) recipients with a median follow up of 3.3 (2.9-5.2) years, Thomas and colleagues examined whether cognitive impairment is associated with an increased risk of all-cause graft loss (ACGL). This was assessed using the Modified Mini-Mental State (3MS) examination upon admission for KT. Prevalence of cognitive impairment was 10.0%. ACGL for living donor KT recipients with and without any degree of cognitive impairment was 45.5% and 10.6% at 5 years respectively (p<0.01). In deceased donor KT recipients this difference in ACGL was not observed, however when these patients were stratified by those with severe cognitive impairment versus those without, ACGL was 53.0% at 5 years versus 24.2% (p=0.046). Consideration should be given to screening of cognition to identify high risk KT candidates, whilst further research is required to assess potential strategies for cognition optimisation and their impact on patient outcomes.
CLICK HERE TO VIEWAug. 29 - By the time a fetus is 6 months old, it is producing electrical signals recognizable as brain waves. And clusters of lab-grown human brain cells known as organoids seem to follow a similar schedule, researchers reportedin the journal Cell Stem Cell.
Aug. 26 - A cancer therapy has crossed a milestone in clinical trials, a major development in a decades-long quest to develop a treatment that destroys tumors without the debilitating side effects of chemotherapy, invasive surgery and radiation.
Sept. 3 - As many as 2,500 more organs could be made available for transplant in the UK if families spoke more openly about donating after death, says the NHS Blood and Transplant organisation.
Aug. 27 - Surgeons at UC San Diego Health have transplanted the kidney of a deceased donor with HIV into a recipient with a pre-existing HIV infection. The procedure is part of an unprecedented multi-site national clinical trial to evaluate the safety and benefit of HIV-to-HIV kidney transplantation.
Aug. 29 - Solid organ transplantation should be considered for five-year childhood cancer survivors who suffer from severe end-organ failure, according to a study published in The Lancet.
Aug. 29 - New research out of Lerner Research Institute’s Department of Pathobiology provides hope for preventing liver inflammation caused by long-term alcohol abuse. This early-stage research helps illustrate how alcohol damages the liver and may offer targets for future preventive therapies.
The 3rd Joint Meeting of the Turkish Transplantation Society and the Turkic World Transplantation Society will be held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on October 10-11, 2019. The Scientific and Local Organizing Committees, comprised of international transplantation leaders, have developed a program that reflects current problems and represents a collection of scientific, educational, and practical information. The meeting will be an exciting opportunity for transplant professionals to share their expertise as well as their concerns regarding the development of the field in their own countries.
SPLIT is an official section of The Transplantation Society
ITS 2019 is set for Nov. 10-13 in Clearwater Beach, Florida. Keynote speakers include Katherine High, President and Head of R&D at Spark Therapeutics, and Ronald Germain, chief of Laboratory of Immune System Biology and Lymphocyte Biology Section at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases National Institutes of Health.
On 22 October 2019, the DICG and STALYC bring together representatives and professionals of 20 Latin American countries for a special symposium on Transparency in Organ Donation and Transplantation for Latin America just prior to the XXV Latin American and Caribbean Transplant Congress, in Merida Mexico. The objective of the meeting is the best understanding and search for strategies to prevent organ trafficking and transplant tourism in the Latin American region, it is sought to generate a joint document based on the conclusions of the event, all in line with the principles of the Istanbul Declaration and the Aguascalientes Document 10 years after its publication. On 24 October 2019, in the special DICG Session, leaders from around the world will discuss the role of the healthcare professional in preventing and combating organ trafficking and transplant tourism.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE STALYC 2019 WEBSITE
With the focus of organ trafficking issues in Asia, the DICG brings together regional and world leaders to discuss Asian specific challenges to develop and implement ethical transplant practices on 1 October 2019 at the 16th Congress of the Asian Society of Transplantation, in New Delhi, India.
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