Abstract
Kidney transplantation is now considered the treatment of choice for many human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Graft survival rates using HIV-negative donors and carefully selected HIV-positive ESRD patients are similar to those observed in HIV-uninfected kidney transplant recipients. To address the relative shortfall in donated organs it has been proposed that organs from HIV-infected deceased donors might be allocated to HIV-infected patients on the transplant waiting list. Preliminary experience in South Africa reports promising short-term outcomes in a small number of HIV-infected recipients of kidney transplants from HIV-infected donors. We sought to replicate this experience in the UK by accepting kidney offers from HIV infected deceased donors for patients with HIV-infection on the kidney transplant waiting list. Here we report the UK's first cases of kidney transplantation between HIV-positive donors and recipients.