Process of selecting and educating HCV-uninfected kidney waiting-list candidates for HCV-infected kidney transplantation.

ABSTRACT

Long waiting times for kidney transplant (KT) and the high risk of mortality on dialysis have prompted investigation into strategies to utilize hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected organs to decrease discard rates of potentially viable kidneys. Due the opioid epidemic, the number of HCV-infected donors has increased significantly. With the development of direct-acting antiviral therapies for HCV infection, now more than 95% of patients who received treatment are cured. Experimental trials have used direct-acting antiviral therapy to treat HCV infection in HCV-uninfected transplant recipients of kidneys from HCV-viremic donors. To date, HCV has been eradicated in all cases. Though these strategies will potentially increase the donor pool of available kidneys, shorten waitlist times, and ultimately decrease mortality in patients waiting for KT, identifying the ideal candidates and educating them about a protocol to utilize direct-acting antiviral therapy to cure HCV after it is transmitted is essential. We present our approach to patient selection and education for a clinical trial in transplantation of HCV viremic kidneys into uninfected recipients.