UK’s first kidney swap – pairing organs, sharing life

Two couples are celebrating the gift of life after surgeons performed the UK’s first-ever paired kidney swap.

Issue date: 4 October 2007

Release date: Tuesday 2 October 2007
Embargo: 00.01hrs Thursday 4 October 2007

This new form of donation has been allowed thanks to new systems set up by the Human Tissue Authority (HTA). These give more flexibility in who can donate to whom, whilst ensuring that key ethical principles are maintained.

Before the HTA was established, organ donations from living people could only be made to genetic relatives and to people with close personal relationships or a close emotional tie.

The landmark transplant involved couples in Cambridgeshire and Edinburgh. A donor and recipient couple whose blood or tissue type did not match were paired with a donor and recipient in the same situation. (For details of how to interview / photograph the couples tomorrow – Wednesday3 October 2007 – see contact details at the end of this release.)

Kidneys were exchanged by relay: one donor kidney was flown from Edinburgh to Cambridgeshire and transplanted before the other couple’s donor kidney was flown back to Scotland for a similar operation.

Adrian McNeil, Chief Executive of the HTA, said: “I am delighted that two couples can now lead a normal life. The arrival of paired donation is a landmark that signals new hope for people waiting for organs. We hope that this novel way of matching suitable organ donors will improve and even save many more lives in future. We want more people to understand that this form of donation exists and
works so that many more can benefit.”

The HTA is responsible for approving all organ transplants from living donors through an independent assessment process. All donors and recipients have to be assessed by an Independent Assessor (IA) who acts independently on behalf of the donor. The IA ensures that the donor fully understands what donation involves, is not under any pressure to donate, and gives consent freely and voluntarily.

By comparing tissue and blood types with other couples in a similar situation, UK Transplant was able to find a ‘match’ so that both couples in need of a transplant could be ‘paired’ together to receive a compatible organ.

Chris Rudge, Managing and Transplant Director for UK Transplant, said: “This first successful paired kidney transplant is a very welcome development – for the patients themselves and because it offers new opportunities for all those still waiting for their transplant. Many more patients could benefit from this innovative new scheme, which we believe could result in up to a further 50 life-changing transplants each year.”

The operations were carried out by John Forsythe, consultant surgeon at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, and Andrew Bradley, Professor of Surgery at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.

The exchange greatly improved the life of the Scottish recipient who now no longer needs dialysis three times a week. The operation also gave a new life to a married couple from Cambridgeshire who were both discharged from hospital in five days.

Most organs for transplants are donated from people who have died, but every year, more people receive organs from living donors.

Transplants from living donors are more successful than from deceased donors. In the last year, almost 800 living-donor transplants have been approved, mainly kidneys.

New ways of donating organs, such as paired donation, provide opportunities for this figure to increase.

Ends

Notes to editors

1. The HTA was established on 1 April 2005 to implement the Human Tissue Act (HT Act). The HT Act requires that the HTA must approve all transplant operations involving living donors following an independent assessment. This is the case whether the donor is related or unrelated to the donor who receives it.

2. The HTA also regulates the removal, storage, use and disposal of human bodies, organs and tissue for a number of ‘Scheduled Purposes’ – such as research, transplantation, and education and training – set out in the HT Act.

3. The HT Act covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There is separate legislation in Scotland – the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006 – and the HTA performs certain tasks on behalf of the Scottish Executive (approval of living donation of organs and licensing of establishments storing tissue for
human application).

4. As the regulator under the HT Act, the HTA is responsible for licensing a number of activities and carrying out inspections to ensure licence conditions are being met.

These activities include:

• Anatomical examination
• Post mortem examination
• Removal of material from the deceased in certain circumstances
• Storage of post mortem material
• Storage of anatomical specimens
• Storage of material for other purposes – e.g. for human application (transplantation) or research
• Public display of a body or material from a deceased person
  
  

5. For more information, visit the HTA website: www.hta.gov.uk

Contact

HTA – for further interviews and further information, contact Heath Jeffries, Head of Media: 0207 211 3439/ 07917 551741. heath.jeffries@hta.gov.uk