News Health & Medicine

Immune traits may identify lucky kidney-transplant recipients

Tests find a genetic signature that may delineate people who could drop immune-suppression therapy

By Nathan Seppa

- More than 2 years ago

Certain immune-system characteristics may explain why some kidney-transplant recipients can stop taking immune-suppressing drugs without rejecting their new organs, two new studies show.

Doctors might someday use these biological traits — specifically a genetic “signature” found in these unusual patients — to discern which kidney recipients might be able to get off these harsh drugs.