Only 9 organ transplants in half a year: Who is obstructing and why, is it "profitable" for some to export patients out of BiH?

(Patria) - The Association of Dialysis and Transplant Patients of FBiH expresses its dissatisfaction and bitterness due to the current situation and the drastic reduction in transplants in our country.

"We hoped that after 2024, when we had 36 transplants, that number would only grow and that we would have at least the same number this year, if not more. So far, we have only performed 9 transplants, of which only 3 were cadaveric.

UKC Tuzla, which was once a leader and the first transplant center in the country, has today dropped to only 3 transplants in half a year, which is a catastrophic result. KCUS performed twice as many as UKC Tuzla, but all together it is insufficient and negligible for the needs of the patients waiting," the Association states.

Currently, there are 217 patients on the federal waiting list: 164 patients waiting for a kidney, 32 patients waiting for a liver, and 21 for a heart.

"The number of patients waiting, especially for kidneys, should be higher, as there are almost 2000 patients on dialysis, and one third could be transplanted. However, even the patients currently on the waiting list have almost no hope of one day receiving
the "most important call in life", which is the call for a transplant. Living related and unrelated transplants are also a problem, as we have pairs ready for transplantation who have been waiting for months. We ask ourselves: Who is obstructing the transplant process in BiH and why? Who doesn't care about saving the lives of seriously ill patients for whom transplantation is the only chance for a new life? Who doesn't care about developing transplant medicine, which is the foundation for the development of other branches of medicine? Who doesn't care about savings, because dialysis is a much more expensive
treatment method than transplantation?", they state in their address.

With this letter, they want to warn all responsible parties in the transplant chain in FBiH, from the Federal Ministry of Health, the Center for Transplant Medicine, clinical center managers, cantonal ministries of health, and all others who, through their inaction, endanger the right to treatment (transplantation) of our colleagues from dialysis and those waiting for other organs, that they, as an Association, will undertake all measures, and if necessary, the most radical ones, to shake up the aforementioned "sleepers" so that transplantation becomes a normal surgical procedure and is performed continuously.

"We have all the prerequisites for transplants to be performed, as 2024 showed. We warn that we will not and must not allow pairs ready for organ transplantation to wait 7-8 months for a transplant. This is unacceptable. These obstructions that you are creating in institutions or organizations play into the hands of so-called humanitarian organizations that "export" patients abroad to "pocket" a euro or two. We only fear that doctors in clinical centers and other hospitals in FBiH are also involved in these intrigues regarding sending patients abroad for treatment. If this is confirmed, we are prepared to initiate lawsuits against negligent doctors in accordance with the Law on Transplantation of Organs and Tissues for Treatment. Worldwide, 19 transplants are performed every hour.

What the world does in half an hour, we in BiH cannot do in 6 months. And that is not normal.
We hope we will not be forced to take to the streets again to demand our rights," the Association states.