Severe Graft-versus-Host Disease in a Liver-Transplant Recipient

CLINICALLY evident generalized graft-versus-host disease is not thought to occur as a consequence of transplantation of most solid organs. The requisite large inoculum of donor lymphoid cells and inability of the recipient to destroy these passenger cells 1 are apparently rarely produced by solid-organ transplantation. However, there is a high risk of graft-versus-host disease when normal spleens are included in vascularized pancreas-transplants. 2 3 4 5 We report on a case of severe generalized acute graft-versus-host disease in a recipient of a liver transplant, involving documented transient chimerism of donor origin. This life-threatening complication was treated successfully with increases in the corticosteroid dosage and the . . .