Abstract:
The purpose of this white paper is to recommend essential reporting standards for pathologic characterization of kidney and heart xenografts in humans. This proposal is based on the current classifications for human kidney and heart allografts, with additions and caveats relevant to xenografts, primarily derived from nonhuman primate studies and a limited number of organ xenografts in decedent and living humans. Such recommendations should not be regarded as diagnostic criteria, given that many pathologic patterns and mechanisms remain to be fully characterized. While xenograft transplantation continues to evolve, this report serves as groundwork and an initial step toward defining international standards in xenograft histopathology assessment and reporting.