Blood group boost for kidney patients in West

Matthew Hill
BBC West Health Correspondent

Southmead Hospital is one of the first outside London offering so-called "blood group incompatible kidney transplantation"

Kidney transplant patients in the West are able to receive organs from donors with a different blood group for the first time.

Southmead Hospital in Bristol is one of the first outside London offering a so-called "blood group incompatible kidney transplantation".

About one in three potential kidney donations from family members failed to proceed in the past because those involved had different blood types.

Blood is "washed" in the new procedure, removing harmful antibodies and enabling the recipient to receive an organ from a donor despite having an incompatible blood group.

100% better

Mark Trimby, 47, an engineer from Bradley Stoke, received a new kidney from his daughter Carly, 24, in March using the technique.

After suffering for more than 10 years with a chronic kidney disease, doctors told Mr Trimby he needed a new kidney and he was put on dialysis three times a week.

His daughter volunteered to give him a kidney, but tests revealed she had type A blood which does not match with his type O.

Carly, who also lives in Bradley Stoke, said: "Mum did offer originally to donate, but they found she had a kidney stone so she was not able to, so I just came forward."

The new procedure involved giving an extra anti-rejection drug - Rituximab - to help switch off the cells in Mr Trimby's body that generate anti-blood group A antibodies.

This was combined with a treatment called plasma exchange, which removed the antibodies that were already present in Mr Trimby's blood.

Blood needs to be treated several times before the transplant

The plasma exchange treatment needs to be carried out several times before the transplant operation, to ensure that the recipient's body accepts the new kidney.

After this, as with any kidney transplant, the recipient has to take routine anti-rejection drugs indefinitely.

Mr Trimby said: "Before the operation I had no energy, I lost my appetite, I could not walk very far.

"But now I have a lot more energy. I can play with my grandchildren. It's 100% better."

Dr Rommel Ravanan, the consultant nephrologist who supervised the procedure for Mr Trimby and his daughter, said: "The technique allows us to make the immune system quiet for a period of two to four weeks during which it is not able to recognise the different blood group in the recipient.

"Once it wakes up and starts working subsequently it does not mind the kidney from the different blood group.

"So this is a way of tricking the immune system briefly to allow the transplant to happen.

"Once the transplant is in and working, then it doesn't really matter for the long run."

There are about 1,000 living kidney donor transplants a year, but this technique could increase that figure by a third.