There’s new hope for patients awaiting transplants.

Marianne Herbert, of the Beresford Swan Dialysis Unit said paired kidney donation is already a real possibility for at least one local family. The programme only works with living donors.

“In the case that I’m working with at the moment,” said Ms. Herbert, “a husband wants to give to a wife but they’re incompatible blood types. But at the Brighams & Women’s Hospital, which is where our transplants mostly take place, there is another couple in the same situation. The donor in that case is compatible with our potential recipient and our donor is compatible with their potential recipient so they are actually going to swap donors.”

While final details of the transplants are still being worked out, it is hoped that they will take place this month.

“This is so new,” said Ms Herbert. “I believe this will be the first one done at Brigham & Women’s Hospital just between their patients and so this will be quite historic.” The programme opens the door for many patients who have a willing donor. “Because of the lack of cadaver kidney organs today we are trying to promote living donation as much as we possibly can,” she said.

The new programme is not without its hurdles. “Obviously there are a lot of things to be taken into account when you’ve got donors and recipients with different insurance companies and also from a different country. All that has to tie in,” said Ms Herbert.