RESEARCH
A new way to help liver transplant patients avoid organ rejection
Researchers are trying to train the immune system to tolerate transplanted organs. A small, early-stage study published today shows promise in taking cells from living donors — people giving a portion of their livers — to teach recipients’ immune systems to accept the foreign organs as their own.
Immune tolerance has long been the holy grail in transplant medicine, as anti-rejection regimens for patients can be extensive and involve numerous side effects. In the Nature Communications study, 13 patients received an infusion of cells taken from their donors a week before their transplants. After a year, eight of them met criteria for withdrawing their immune-suppressing drugs, and four went completely off immunosuppression (although one had to resume taking the drugs).
What were the results after three years? STAT’s Elizabeth Cooney has the study’s full readout.
VACCINES
Tetanus tales, part two
Earlier this week, the CDC reported on more than 400 cases of tetanus in the U.S. from 2009 to 2023, most in un- or under-vaccinated people. On Thursday, the agency released another report on four tetanus cases among kids in 2024. None were vaccinated.
In two of the cases, parents brought the children for medical care after the accidents that likely led to them developing tetanus. When told their children should get preventive care, including a tetanus vaccine and immunoglobulin, both families declined. All four kids had to be hospitalized for between eight and 45 days; two needed inpatient rehabilitation care after their hospital stays. All received tetanus immunoglobulin and at least one dose of tetanus vaccine while in hospital, but only one child got the recommended series of three doses.
The report doesn't list in detail what these children went through while ill. But an account of a similar hospitalization in 2017 painted a gruesome picture of an agonizing illness — for the child, the family, and the health professionals who provided care. That child had to be sedated for weeks, because any noise or stimulation triggered bone wrenching spasms. — Helen Branswell
FIRST OPINION
Don’t believe headlines saying that vaccine skepticism is widespread
That viral Politico poll that supposedly captured Americans’ cratering support for vaccines? Be skeptical, says David Higgins, a physician whose work focuses on vaccine delivery, health policy, and communication. Or at the very least read the fine print.
Politico’s write-up of the poll suggested that “nearly half” of U.S. adults think the science on vaccines remains up for debate, a sentiment echoed by many other outlets. But a deeper dive into the question that birthed this data point shows it obscures more than it clarifies about attitudes towards vaccines. The touted finding also runs up against many surveys in recent years that show an erosion in confidence but still robust support for vaccines.
“How this type of information is gathered and interpreted has significant consequences on people’s beliefs and attitudes … it may change what clinicians say in the exam room, the decisions policymakers and leaders make, and ultimately become a self-fulfilling prophecy,” said Higgins. Read more.
HHS
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