Antibody detection in transplant patients

Organ transplantation is the most effective treatment for end stage organ failure. More than 500,000 patients have been transplanted with heart, lung, kidney, liver or small bowl allografts in the United States of America. There are more than 100,000 patients waiting for lifesaving organ transplants in the United States of America, mainly due to limited numbers of donors. It would be ideal if the allograft could function for a life time to fully utilize the limited resources. However, the transplanted organ is not a natural part of our body. In result, our immune system will attack the allograft as it recognizes it as foreign.