Kidney Transplants
Bone Marrow Transplants
Terms
Ethics
Current Impacts
100

The first person to perform a successful human kidney transplant

Joseph Murray, MD

100

Why do identical twin transplants work?

Donor and recipient have exactly the same type of tissues (they cells have the same surface antigens).
100

Graft versus Host Disease (GVHD)

A condition where donated cells attack the living cells of the recipient (which both Murray and Thomas had to contend with).
100

How could organ transplantation be considered to undermine the Hippocratic Oath?

The removal of a vital organ by a donor could be considered a "harm" to them, negating the benefit to the recipient.

200

The reason Murray continued pursuing transplantation research even though it was considered pointless at the time

He believed immunosuppression held the key to successful transplants.

200

Dr. E Donnall Thomas's greatest sidekick on the discovery that earned him a Nobel Prize was:

His wife, Dottie Thomas.

200

Function of the kidney

To filter waste products and toxins from the blood stream

300

HLA

Human Leukocyte Antigen
300

Function of the bone marrow

Produces red and white blood cells

400
Thomas's hypothesis that fueled his work on bone marrow transplantation

Radiation can destroy the cancer cells, and donor cells can repopulate the bone marrow to cure Leukemia.

400
Function of dialysis

To replace the kidney's function by manually removing toxins and waste products through a machine, multiple times weekly.

400

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Donation of stem cells from donor or self after chemotherapy or radiation treatment

500

Thomas's final discovery that made bone marrow transplantation a feasible therapy.

Radiation and bone marrow transplantation during a patient's first remission increased their odds of survival from 10% to 60-70%.
500

The way that the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine continues Murray and Thomas's work.

Experiments are being run to modify regulatory T cells so that they can protect the recipient's immune system from attacking the donor organ.
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