Saving lives at the double

There is a special significance surrounding Organ Donation Day on 13 November. It comes after the first paired kidney transplant operations in Hong Kong, following the launch of a pilot programme in 2018. The operations are a milestone in organ donation, and we sincerely hope they encourage more patients and their families to support organ donation.

When a patient needs a living kidney transplant, the donor is usually a close family member or spouse. However, the surgery cannot proceed if their blood group or Human Leucocyte Antigen (HLA) are incompatible. Under the Paired Kidney Donation (PKD) Pilot Programme, suitable parings are made by computer from a pool of live donors. By this method as shown above, a donor from one pair gives a kidney to the patient from the second pair, and vice versa, meaning the lives of two patients are transformed.

The breakthrough in PKD is the cover story of November edition of HASLink, and the cover design is illustrated by Dr Lucci Lugee Liyeung, Resident Specialist of Department of Orthopaedics & Traumatology of Prince of Wales Hospital. She is also our interviewee in the ‘People’ section of this edition (P22-23). Dr Liyeung put her inspired artwork online to deliver important health messages at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was highly praised. Dr Dumo – the cheetah surgeon featured on our cover – is one of the key characters. We are very grateful to Dr Liyeung for her design.

One of the lessons of this edition of HASLink is that, with determination, compassion, and dedication, great things are possible. We hope the stories and characters behind these remarkable achievements delight and inspire you.

Video of paired kidney transplant