[The present status and prospective view in organ transplantation]

Transplants are nothing new in terms of medical technology. Organ transplantation had been established in the cyclosporine era in 1980s. More than 70 percent of Transplant patients worldwide who received organs from brain-dead donors are still alive after transplantation. Organ shortage is the most serious concerning in the world. In Japan, liver transplants from living donors and kidney transplants from living donors or non heart-beating donors have been carried out regularly. The Organ Transplant Law of October 1997 paved the way for change in Japanese organ transplantation. Improving the quality of life of patient after transplant and tolerance induction are the obvious targets for organ transplantation in the next millennium.