Mangaluru sees region’s first kidney ‘swap’ transplant

MANGALURU:  A woman’s plan to donate a kidney to her son Hariprasad, who had been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD), fell through due to a mismatch in the blood group. Somewhere in Kerala, another woman was left heartbroken when her wish to donate a kidney to her husband Rajesh did not materialise for the same reason. But as luck would have it, their paths crossed resulting in the region’s first kidney ‘swap’ transplant. Consultant Nephrologist at KMC hospital Dr Sushanth Kumar said many factors including a mismatch in blood groups prevent kidney transplant among first relatives.

“Luckily, as the results of cross-matching were found positive, the wife and mother were advised swap transplant”, he said. After obtaining permission from zonal committees in Karnataka and Kerala, Hariprasad’s mother donated her kidney to Rajesh and Hariprasad received a kidney from Rajesh’s wife. “Both are healthy and doing well,’’ KMC Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Anand Venugopal said on Friday. Dr Sushanth Kumar said the swap transplant option has come as a boon to patients with chronic kidney diseases in nuclear families. Consultant nephrologist at the hospital, Dr Ashok Bhat, pointed out that women outnumber men as kidney donors.