Groote Schuur Hospital achieved a milestone by performing the first incompatible kidney transplant of its kind in Africa. The ABO-incompatible transplant surgery was performed in January 2023 on Chervon Meyer (35), who has been living with kidney failure for the last decade.
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An ABO-incompatible kidney transplant with the Glycosorb ABO medical device makes blood group-incompatible kidney transplants possible.
Chervon Meyer’s brother, despite having a different blood type, donated one of his kidneys to save her life, and the procedure was successful.
The first ABO-incompatible transplant using the Glycosorb ABO medical device was performed in Sweden in 2001.
To address ABO incompatibility, the Glycosorb ABO device was designed to target and lower the level of anti-A/B antibodies in the plasma of the recipient.
Dr Zunaid Barday, a nephrologist at Groote Schuur Hospital, says the ABO incompatibility occurs due to the presence of anti-A and/or anti-B antibodies in the plasma of the recipient, which can trigger immediate organ rejection and hinder the success of the transplant.
Dr Barday added, “Normally, we wouldn’t be able safely without a very complicated procedure called plasma exchange. The advantage of this new filter is that it allows us to remove just that specific antibody that would cause the rejection efficiently and safely.”
As reported by News24, Meyer has been receiving treatment for the past decade from Groote Schuur’s renal dialysis programme and says “she feels like a new person” after having the surgery on 25 January 2023.
“I feel like I can achieve so many thanks to my transplant. I was scared and nervous. Thanks to the operation, I feel the exact opposite of what I felt when I was on dialysis. I am feeling great. I am grateful for the opportunity that God gave me to be healthy and to be there for my kids. Now I won’t be missing many things in my kids’ lives anymore.”
“This is my first time being without dialysis in 10 years. So, it’s still a bit new to me. I still wake up in the morning for dialysis time then I realise I don’t have to. It’s still unreal. It’s like the biggest blessing. Besides my kids, I am just grateful for the opportunity, ” Meyer said.
Groote Schuur’s transplant coordinator, Grant-Lee Hoffman, said there are currently 1,900 people in the province who are on renal dialysis treatment and 500 people on a waiting list for a kidney transplant.
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Picture: Premier Alan Winde / Facebook