The cornerstone events of transplantation history in Turkey are summarized herein. In 1975, we performed the first living-related renal transplant in Turkey. This was followed in 1978, by the first deceased donor kidney transplantation, using an organ supplied by Eurotransplant. In 1979 the law on harvesting, storage, grafting, and transplantation of organs and tissues was enacted; later that y...

Liver transplantation is the definitive treatment for end-stage liver diseases. The first successful liver transplant was performed in the United States by Thomas Starzl in 1967. The first successful solid organ transplant in Turkey was a living-related kidney transplant performed by Dr. Haberal in 1975. After much effort by Dr. Haberal, the Turkish parliament enacted a law about organ transpla...

From June 1982 to November 1989, 39 ABO-incompatible living kidney transplants were performed in 38 recipients. Pretransplant therapies included platelets donor transfusion (21/39), 2 to 5 plasmapheresis sessions (39/39), cyclosporin A with or without azathioprine (33/39) along with polyclonal Abs (36/39) and splenectomy at the time of transplantation (37/39). The last patient who received 2 AB...

At the present time, increasing the use of living donors offers the best solution to the organ shortage problem. The clinical questions raised when the first living donor kidney transplant was performed, involving donor risk, informed consent, donor protection, and organ quality, have been largely answered. We strongly encourage a wider utilization of living donation and recommend that living d...

Kidney transplantation is the best treatment for patients with end-stage renal disease and recipients of living kidney donors fare better than recipients of deceased donors. In view of the shortage of organ supply and the long waiting list, expansion of the living donor pool has been sought. Importantly, donor acceptance criteria must first and foremost be grounded in concerns for donor safety....

BACKGROUND Limited data exist on the impact of living kidney donation on the donor-recipient relationship. Purpose of this study was to explore motivations to donate or accept a (living donor) kidney, whether expected relationship changes influence decision making and whether relationship changes are actually experienced. METHODS We conducted 6 focus groups in 47 of 114 invited individuals (4...