Recurrent antibody-mediated rejection in renal allograft: physician's dilemma

Antibody-mediated rejection is the primary cause of renal allograft failure, and the molecular mechanistic is relatively less known in comparison to cell-mediated rejection. With the advent of new immunological agents, the short-term graft survival outcomes have improved, but the long-term outcomes are still unchanged. We present a case of 47-year-old with end-stage renal disease due to presumed lupus status post deceased donor renal transplantation. The patient developed recurrent (a total of five) antibody-mediated rejections (donor-specific antibody and C4d staining negative) spanning within a year of transplant despite the standard of care therapies. The present case draws attention to the importance of non-HLA antibodies in antibody-mediated rejection and diagnostic tools we can rely on when the histology is inconclusive and the role of new immunological agents.