They perform the first kidney transplant of a person living with HIV as a donor

For patients with HIV / AIDS, the good news does not stop. Science "had its head" in the United States, where A kidney transplant was performed for the first time from the donation of a woman living with the AIDS virus. He was received by a patient who is also living with the virus. There had already been another similar practice in South Africa when a mother with the virus decided to give some of her liver to her son who was about to die. In Argentina, before the end of the year, this type of donation would be made by donors living with HIV. They believe that the possibilities of having organs and tissues for people with diseases could be expanded and they are on the waiting list of Incucai.

In the United States, the kidney donor was Nina Martínez, 35 years old. A woman who contracted infection with the AIDS virus in her childhood, by transfusion of contaminated blood. Access antiretroviral treatment continuously. Now, he has decided to donate his left kidney to help another person live (who was not identified) and at the same time to dispel the stigma that still exists among people living with HIV.

The woman, who lives in Atlanta, went to donate to Baltimore, where the Johns Hopkins Hospital is located. The transplant took place about 10 days ago and the donor said it was so nice that she was expecting to run a marathon next October.

Since 2016, following the implementation of a standard, 116 organ transplants had been performed in the United States in deceased HIV-positive people. The recipients were patients who needed organs and who were also living with HIV. In Argentina, up to now, only transplants have been performed on people living with HIV as organ recipients. Regulation on transplantation does not prohibit it, but in practice potential HIV-infected donors are excluded.

Dr. Hernán Trimarchi, Head of Nephrology and Kidney Transplantation at the British Hospital, referred to Infobae: "In our institution, we have two cases of people living with HIV who are receiving a transplant, one of whom will be living with a donor living without HIV, in the other case it will be of a deceased donor with HIV, we must take precautions, it will be a fact ". In addition, Dr. Trimarchi stated that "if a person dies and his viral load is low or negative, his organs may be offered to patients on the HIV positive waiting list, although infections or reactivation virus can develop, risks decrease with current treatments. "

At the same time, Ignacio Maglio, a lawyer specializing in bioethics and patient rights of the Huésped Foundation of Muñiz Hospital and the Bioethics Committee of Sanatorium Finochietto, said during a dialogue with Infobae: "Several years ago we had to take protective measures. for an HIV positive person to be put on the waiting list and receive a transplant, "he said." Today, the law does not prohibit people living with HIV / AIDS. HIV to be an organ donor, but in practice they are not included in the case of the living donor living with HIV in the United States, I consider that it is an opportunity to have a debate on the subject, taking into account that there is a shortage of organs, a high number of people on the waiting list and that HIV-positive people can control the infection through the effectiveness of current treatments ".

At the same time, Domingo Casadei, medical director and head of kidney transplantation at the highly complex Transplant Institute, recalled Infobae that it is a group of South African doctors who have begun to consider the possibility of including HIV-positive people as organ donors. "In South Africa, the results have been excellent," said Casadei. "I think that during a kidney transplant, the recipient stops receiving dialysis and reduces the risk of death." With current treatments for HIV being more effective, he said, transplants from donors carrying the virus may soon be common, as is already the case with donor transplants with HIV / AIDS. Hepatitis C.

Last October, the story of the mother of South Africa, who became the first donor living with HIV to give her liver to her baby, who did not have the virus, had Is spread. The baby was on the waiting list for 180 days due to a conbad liver disorder. The organ to be transplanted did not appear. The woman realized that her son was going to die and asked doctors at Donald Gordon Wits Medical Center to consider her a potential donor. The doctors had to choose between these options: they could do the transplant and the baby could contract the HIV virus or not do the surgery and die. They opted for the first one. As the mother was receiving medical treatment, her viral load was low. The baby has evolved well after the transplant and has not contracted the infection.