Clinical Trial Launched To Test If HIV-Positive Organ Donation Is Safe And Can Save Lives
Researchers will assess the risks of transplanting kidneys from HIV-positive donors into patients with the virus. "We have an organ shortage crisis in this country and individuals living with HIV are disproportionately affected," says Dr. Christine Durand, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University.
NPR:
Study Aims To Show Transplants Between HIV-Positive Patients Are Safe, Save Lives
A large-scale clinical trial launched by the National Institutes of Health in May could pave the way for more HIV-positive patients with kidney disease to receive life-saving transplants. The trial, called the HOPE in Action Multicenter Kidney Study, will assess the risks of transplanting kidneys from HIV-positive donors into patients living with the virus, says Dr. Christine Durand, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University and a principal investigator of the study. (Forman, 6/1)
In other news related to HIV —
The New York Times:
Sergeant Sues Defense Dept. Over ‘Outdated’ H.I.V. Policies
Army Sgt. Nick Harrison learned he was infected with H.I.V. six years ago, but the once fatal diagnosis has barely changed his routine at work or at home because he keeps the virus in check with a once-a-day pill. The only thing H.I.V. crippled was his military career. The military bars anyone with the virus that causes AIDS from joining. Policies crafted in the 1980s allow troops who contract the disease while in the military to stay as long as they remain otherwise healthy, but bars them from deploying in nearly all cases. (Philipps, 5/31)
