Immunosuppression-Free Organ Transplant

Folk receiving an organ transplant, usually have to take, for the rest of their lives, immunosuppressive drugs (steroids) to prevent rejection. This puts them at a disadvantage, when the body attempts to deal with infections. This problem seems to have been avoided in an operation in London's Great Ormond Street Hospital. A 8-year old girl received a kidney and a bone marrow transplant from her mother (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/22/aditi-shankar-uk-kidney-transplant-great-ormond-street-hospital). Stem cells in the bone marrow transplant, reprogrammed the girl's immune system, so she won't reject the kidney. The mother's donated kidney has become 'non-foreign' so far as the girl's immune system is concerned. This procedure presumely requires quite close tissue matches. It looks, however, a useful technique, especially when the donor has a spare organ.