Page 1 of 1

nephrectomy of transplanted kidney

Posted: Mon Feb 07, 2005 4:43 am
by amanda in CA
Hi, as some of you already know, I have a very high PRA (percentage reactive antibody) level, which makes a further transplant very unlikely. My transplant unit have stated that unless it is causing a problem, the existing transplanted kidney should not be removed, as it's removal is unlikely to reduce the PRA level and can even make it go up further (mine is as high as it can be so that arguement against doing a nephrectomy seems a bit redundant). However, in talking to one of the units where they are using plasmapheresis to reduce the antibody level prior to doing a live donor transplant is to remove the old transplanted kidney. I am very interested to find out what the general view in the medical profession is on removal of a transplant that is no longer functioning. I would be really grateful if you could help me by slipping this question in next time you have a clinic appointment to find out the answer, as I think that a poll on this one may help me make a decision. I will shop elsewhere if the response indicates that in the majority of cases it is removed. To me it would give me some hope that one day I may be able to have a further transplant, whereas at the moment I feel like I'm a lost cause - I mean, how can my antibody level fall when I have a kidney inside that is making me produce antibodies? thanks in advance for your help and replies. Amanda