First HIV-Positive Organ Transplant in the US to be Conducted in Johns Hopkins

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The Johns Hopkins Hospital has been approved to conduct the first HIV-positive organ transplant in the U.S.

Organ transplant between an HIV-positive patient and HIV-positive donor may now be possible and Johns Hopkins Hospital is gearing up to perform the life-saving procedure for the first time in the U.S.

In 2013, President Barack Obama signed the HIV Organ Policy Equity (HOPE) Act and according to the report by US News & World Report, the hospital took two years to put safe policies in place.

Dr. Dorry Sergev, associate professor of surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said that with the safe practices in place, more than a thousand people could be saved from the transplant surgeries. At least 500 potential donor organs from HIV positive patients are wasted yearly.

"This is an unbelievably exciting day for our hospital and our team, but more importantly for patients living with HIV and end-stage organ disease. For these individuals, this means a new chance at life," Dr. Sergev said in a JHU press release regarding the hospital's approval.

Johns Hopkins will become the first US hospital to perform an HIV-positive kidney transplant and the first to do HIV-positive liver transplant worldwide.

It was previously illegal for doctors to use organs from HIV-positive donors even if it were intended for HIV-positive patients. However, the HOPE Act dispeled the transplant ban that was passed in 1988. According to the New York Times, the ban was most unfortunate for people with HIV during that time.

"Nobody would consider transplanting an H.I.V.-positive recipient because everyone knew their life span was short," said Dr. David Klassen, chief medical officer for the United Network for Organ Sharing, to the outlet. "The notion that H.I.V.-positive recipients could be transplanted arose as a result of their extended life spans."

It is critical for HIV-positive patients on the waiting list to receive new organs as their mortality rate is higher than patients without the autoimmune disease.

"Organ transplantation is actually even more important for patients with HIV, since they die on the waiting list even faster than their HIV-negative counterparts," said Sergev, who is also thankful for the approval. "We are very thankful to Congress, Obama, and the entire transplant community for letting us use organs from HIV-positive patients to save lives, instead of throwing them away, as we had to do for so many years."

Additionally, HIV-positive patients may now have the option to become organ donors upon death. Dr. Sergev said HOPE Act and approval lessens the stigma as well as extends encouragement for those who were unable to donate their organs because of their condition.