Transplant News and Research

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Routine counseling on fertility preservation needed for young women with cancer

A new study has found that very few young women with cancer take steps to preserve their fertility while undergoing cancer therapy. Also, certain groups of young women are more likely to do so than others. Published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that efforts are needed to provide counseling on fertility preservation in reproductive-aged women diagnosed with cancer.

26 Mar 2012

Age of live donor has insignificant effect on long-term health of transplanted kidney

People with kidney failure may think that they're better off getting a new kidney from a young and spry donor, but a recent study indicates that for those over 39 years old, the age of a live donor—ranging from 18 to 64 years—has an insignificant effect on the long-term health of a transplanted kidney. The study's results appear in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN).

23 Mar 2012

Johns Hopkins surgeons seek IRB approval to perform facial transplantation

Johns Hopkins surgeons have established a facial transplantation team and are in the process of obtaining approval from the University's Institutional Review Board (IRB) of their protocol to perform the complicated procedure.

23 Mar 2012

Researchers identify corin enzyme linked with pre-eclampsia

Researchers have identified an enzyme linked to pregnancy-induced hypertension - also known as pre-eclampsia - a pregnancy complication characterized by high blood pressure and swelling due to fluid retention. The findings could be used to better screen for - and treat - this condition.

23 Mar 2012

HCC patients have reduced risk of waitlist mortality

New research shows increasing disparity in mortality among candidates with and without hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are on the waiting list for liver transplantation. The study available in the April issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, found that liver cancer patients are less likely to die on the wait list than non-HCC candidates, prompting transplantation specialists to suggest a reevaluation of current allotment criteria for those with HCC.

23 Mar 2012

UM hospital second in the U.S. to perform full face transplant

The University of Maryland announced today that a full face transplant, including double jaw and tongue, was completed today on a 37-year old male patient. The 36 hour operative procedure took place at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center and involved a multi-disciplinary team of faculty physicians from The University of Maryland School of Medicine.

22 Mar 2012

CIBMTR report shows higher survival rate for patients treated at RPCI's BMT program

Outcomes for patients treated through the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) are among the highest in the nation. For the second consecutive year, a report compiled by the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) shows that the one-year survival rate for transplant patients treated at RPCI was significantly higher than expected, affirming RPCI's position among the elite of U.S. centers performing the procedure.

21 Mar 2012

Bone-marrow derived MSCs may reduce acute rejection rates in kidney recipients

Among patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing living-related kidney transplants, the use of bone-marrow derived mesenchymal (cells that can differentiate into a variety of cell types) stem cells instead of antibody induction therapy resulted in a lower incidence of acute rejection, decreased risk of opportunistic infection, and better estimated kidney function at 1 year, according to a study in the March 21 issue of JAMA.

21 Mar 2012

New drug makes chemotherapy more effective in treating acute myeloid leukemia

Doctors at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown that a new drug makes chemotherapy more effective in treating acute myeloid leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells. Instead of attacking these cells directly, the drug helps drive them out of the bone marrow and into the bloodstream, where they are more vulnerable to chemotherapy.

21 Mar 2012

North Shore-LIJ inaugurates NYHNI's Center for Cranial Base Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital

As part of its ongoing efforts to develop patient-centric services that focus on disease prevention and management, the North Shore-LIJ Health System today announced the creation of the New York Head and Neck Institute (NYHNI), a part of its head and neck surgery service line, and the opening of the Center for Cranial Base Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital.

20 Mar 2012

Paper describes results of BMT in models of Rett Syndrome

A paper published online today in Nature describes the results of using bone marrow transplant (BMT) to replace faulty immune system cells in models of Rett Syndrome. The procedure arrested many severe symptoms of the childhood disorder, including abnormal breathing and movement, and significantly extended the lifespan of Rett mouse models.

19 Mar 2012

FDA approves IDE for HeartWare 'ADVANCE' bridge-to-transplant clinical trial

HeartWare International, Inc., a leading innovator of less invasive, miniaturized circulatory support technologies that are revolutionizing the treatment of advanced heart failure, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved an IDE Supplement that allows HeartWare to enroll a fourth allotment, of 54 additional patients, in its "ADVANCE" bridge-to-transplant clinical trial under a Continued Access Protocol.

17 Mar 2012

Experts highlight latest advances in use of biomarkers in various diseases

Over the last few decades there has been an explosion in the discovery of biomarkers for diagnosis, disease monitoring, and prognostic evaluation. In the April issue of Translational Research, entitled "Biomarkers: New Tools of Modern Medicine," an international group of medical experts explores the promise and challenges of biomarker discovery and highlights the latest advances in the use of biomarkers in various diseases.

16 Mar 2012

EORTC, EASL publish first joint CPGs on management of hepatocellular carcinoma

The European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) today publish their first joint Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) on the management of hepatocellular carcinoma.

16 Mar 2012

Combination therapy may improve life span and motor function of infants with Batten disease

Infants with Batten disease, a rare but fatal neurological disorder, appear healthy at birth. But within a few short years, the illness takes a heavy toll, leaving children blind, speechless and paralyzed. Most die by age 5.

16 Mar 2012

Doctors can use genetic profiling to more accurately predict patients with AML

Researchers have identified a set of genetic abnormalities in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) that doctors can use to more accurately predict patients' prognoses and select treatments that are most likely to benefit them.

15 Mar 2012

New study suggests another benefit to antimicrobial stewardship

Curbing unnecessary use of antibiotics is our best defense against the spread of drug-resistant infections. A new study suggests another benefit to antimicrobial stewardship: a potential cost savings of millions of dollars now wasted on therapies that don't help patients.

15 Mar 2012

New rule ensuring equal access for ESRD patients receives DPC praise

Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC), the nation's largest patient-led organization representing dialysis patients, applauded the Administration for taking steps to solidify a key provision that will ensure end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients have equal access to private coverage as Affordable Care Act reforms are implemented.

14 Mar 2012

Researchers double time to store donated cartilage

For years, doctors have been able to treat defects in joint cartilage by grafting cartilage donated from cadavers into patients' bad joints. Using current methods, donated cartilage can be stored for 28 days for a transplant before the tissue becomes too degraded to transplant into a patient. Now, researchers from the University of Missouri have found a way to store donated cartilage more than twice as long.

14 Mar 2012

Living-donor parathyroid gland transplant allows young woman to forgo 60 pills per day

Surgeons at the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System performed a rare living-donor parathyroid gland transplant to help a 22-year-old woman maintain normal calcium levels without the need for high-dose supplementation.

13 Mar 2012