Clinical value of cadaveric renal homotransplantation

Cadaveric renal transplantation was found to be potentially applicable to 80% of a uremic population as observed over a six-year period. Death prior to presentation of a donor kidney occurred in 25%, 40% have received transplants and 15% are awaiting transplantation. Transplantation resulted in restoration of near normal renal function and homograft survival rates of 45% at one year, 40% at two years and 17% at four years. Failure of the therapeutic procedure resulted more often from death of the patient than from failure of the donor organ. Patient death was most frequently ascribed to complications of the immunosuppressive therapy, but cardiovascular accidents were also a significant cause. Early renal failure was due to hyperacute or acute rejection, while the cause of late renal failure remains unproved. Re-transplantation was effective treatment for late failure and, as a result, the four-year patient survival is nearly 40% compared to four-year initial kidney survival of 17%.