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Kidney-Swap Surgery Saves Two Lives

Global Hospitals, Parel saved the lives of two patients by performing a swap kidney transplant between two families. The two kidneys removed from one of the patients were the biggest recorded in an operation in India, weighing a staggering 12.8kg.

The patient, 41-year-old Roman, suffered from autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), a life-threatening genetic disorder that causes cyst formation and kidney enlargement.

In a milestone surgery, the hospital team headed by Dr Pradeep Rao, Director of Urology and Renal Transplant and Dr Bharat Shah, Director of Institute of Renal Sciences, successfully removed the patient’s enlarged kidneys through an open surgery and replaced them with a kidney from an unrelated donor in a Swap Kidney Transplant.

“A swap kidney transplant, also known as a ‘paired exchange’, is an exchange of organs between two families who cannot donate the organ to their own family member because of blood group mismatch,” explained Dr Bharat Shah.

In turn, Roman’s wife donated her kidney to the husband of the donor who was suffering from kidney failure. The two surgeries were performed simultaneously. Both patients are recovering well and are now able to go about their daily activities with ease.

Roman said, “I was diagnosed with ADPKD 10 years ago but my condition started to deteriorate about a year and a half ago. My stomach started to swell, I gained a lot of weight and I would become breathless after walking for a short while. I thank the doctors from Global Hospital, Parel for saving my life. I am well on the road to recovery now.”