Recent advances in solid organ transplantation

Advances in organ transplantation have come rapidly and consistently in recent years as the result of improved surgical techniques and immunosuppressive drug therapies. Experience gained in renal transplantation over the past 30 years has made this a standard therapeutic approach for treating chronic renal failure. This knowledge has been successfully applied to the transplantation of other organs to produce steadily increasing survival rates and improved quality of life. This article reviews the advances that have been made in solid organ transplantation and immunosuppressive drug therapy.