A patient in the United Kingdom died after a kidney transplant from a donor with cancer, revealing a rare and serious medical complication. The event underscores the ongoing challenges in transplant safety and cancer screening, even when donors show no obvious signs of illness.
Parminder Singh Sidhu faced kidney problems long before moving to West London. At age 30, his health issues culminated in a kidney transplant in 2005 in India, a procedure that proceeded without apparent complications. After relocating to the capital region, Sidhu’s kidney condition resurfaced during the COVID-19 lockdown, and he began regular dialysis to manage his needs while remaining able to support his family. His determination to improve his health led him to pursue another transplant at a major European center.
In 2021, Sidhu underwent transplantation at Hammersmith Hospital, one of Europe’s most active kidney transplant centers. Later that winter, he experienced hip pain that prompted further imaging. A mass measuring about 7 cm appeared in the transplanted kidney, and Sidhu opted for surgical removal of the organ. What followed was a devastating discovery: the cancer had already spread to the spine, and Sidhu passed away in March 2022, roughly a year after the operation.
Initial scans conducted four months after the transplant had indicated a small lesion about one centimeter in size, which doctors interpreted as a cyst. It was only after the cancer had advanced that clinicians recognized the true nature of the growth, a highly aggressive form of cancer linked to the transplanted tissue. Tests showed that the cancer was not lymphoma, a condition that can occur in a minority of kidney transplant cases due to the immunosuppressive medications used to prevent organ rejection.
Further investigation revealed that two additional recipients who received kidneys from the same donor also developed cancer in the following period. While such incidents are exceedingly rare, they accounted for a small fraction of cases within the broader transplant landscape, with the donor linked to a unique, though uncommon, cancer risk. Medical professionals stressed that, in retrospect, there was no clear explanation for why this particular donor’s organs carried cancer that went undetected at the time of transplantation. This case prompted renewed attention to donor screening protocols and post-transplant surveillance to balance the life-saving benefits of organ donation with the need to minimize the risk of malignancy.
Experts noted that cancer in transplant recipients can be influenced by immunosuppressive therapy, which is designed to prevent organ rejection but can also alter the body’s ability to detect and fight emerging tumors. The rarity of this scenario means that even with thorough screening, some risks can remain hidden, underscoring the importance of ongoing research and careful monitoring in transplant medicine. The incident serves as a sobering reminder that even procedures considered routine carry the potential for unforeseen consequences, and it highlights the vital role of transparency, patient education, and informed consent in the transplant process. [citation attribution]