KUALA LUMPUR: The immune system in each person recognises the antigens belonging to him, and it would normally attack foreign antigens, said National Heart Institute (IJN) consultant cardiologist Datuk Dr David Chew Soon Ping.
Explaining why a person’s body would reject an implanted organ, he said this was the way the body recognised “self and foreign organs” – and when there is a transplant from individual A to B, the body would not recognise the organ and would “ attack” it.
In the case of Tee Hui Yi, the 14-year-old girl’s immune system rejected the heart, despite her being given immunosuppressant.
“If there is over-immunosuppressant, then there is also a higher risk of infection,” he added.
Dr Chew said patients who undergo organ transplant are always at risk of rejection, and the risk is higher immediately after the transplant.
This article was originally published in theStar Online.
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