Doctors Report Transplant Breakthrough

By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science Writer, Medicine & Health / Research

Los Angeles patient Derek Besenfelder, a public relations director for a plastic surgery clinic, holds his hands close to the position of his "third kidney" in Beverly Hills, Calif. Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008. Besenfelder, who received a kidney transplant from his mother along with a bone marrow three years ago, has been able to discontinue taking anti-rejection drugs. The breakthrough experimental transplant saves recipients from taking drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent organ rejection. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

(AP) -- In what's being called a major advance in organ transplants, doctors say they have developed a technique that could free many patients from having to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of their lives.

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Posted by vlam67 01/24/08 13:54

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The clinical progression and result of this case and this newest case http://www.physor...291.html is quite striking.

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Posted by Digitalhurricane2k2 01/24/08 16:01

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This story (http://www.physor...71.html) has some similarity as the story with the Australian girl with switched blood type after transplant.
http://www.physor...291.html
Here it was done purposely but the case of the girl it was not. This man got his mother's kidney and bone marrow. Maybe both cases are similar and may be need to be investigated further. There are some questions that need answers to that may even let researchers and doctors understand what happened to the Australian girl's blood and immune system. One question is "Did she need to take anti-rejection drugs after the transplant like the man in this story (http://www.physor...71.html)he did not need to take any anti-rejection drugs?".