New drug may eliminate need for immunosuppressants after transplant

According to the article Organ Transplant Drug Keeps Immune System in Check in Business Week, a new drug currently in development may one day eliminate or at least substantially reduce the amount of immunosuppressant drugs transplant patients have to take. The immunosuppressants keep the transplant patients body from rejecting their new organs but come with a number of side effects. For instance, these drugs can cause high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and kidney problems. Reseachers say that this new revolutionary drug "educates" the patient's body to believe that the transplanted organ is the body's original organ. Therefore, the body does NOT reject it. Furthermore, if the new drug proves successful in either reducing reliance upon immunosuppressants or eliminating them altogether, it would also remove the aforementioned risks associated with the immunosuppressants. Any transplant patient will agree that is a good thing.