Patient Unknowingly Transplanted From High-Risk Donor

(Chicago, Illinois) A 30-ish woman received an organ transplant from a high-risk donor and wasn't informed. Now she has hepatitis and HIV. According to attorney Thomas Demetrio, "She's really a mess right now."

The woman had been told the donor was a healthy young man, her attorney said. But on Tuesday, hospital officials disclosed to the woman that he [the donor] was actually high-risk, a 38-year-old gay man.

Interestingly, everyone knew the donor was high-risk except for the patient. Four people received transplants from the one gay donor and all four people became infected with hepatitis and HIV.

Four patients got organs in January at three Chicago hospitals from a donor who died after a traumatic injury. The donor had engaged in high-risk behaviors, according to a screening questionnaire, but standard testing showed the donor did not have AIDS or hepatitis C.

Gift of Hope tested the organs and approved them for donation, telling the three hospitals that they came from a high-risk donor.

Several months later, when one of the patients was being evaluated, blood tests showed the patient had HIV and hepatitis C. The other three patients were notified and tested, showing they had both viruses.

The CDC says it's the first time ever that both viruses were transmitted simultaneously through an organ transplant. It's also the first known time since 1986 that HIV was transmitted through organ donation.

Transplanting infected organs is unexcusable. Maybe when we get universal health care, the government will make sure this type of mistake never occurs.

On second thought, maybe not.

Tip: Travis Evans