Some 5 100 kidney transplants have been carried out in Cuba since the 1970s up to date, with survival levels compared to those reached in developed nations, said an expert in Havana.

Doctor Alexander Marmol, official with the National Transplant Office at the Public Health Ministry, said that nearly 400 of all transplants were carried out from living donors, particularly relatives.

Marmol, a nephrology expert, said that Cuba counts on large donation levels thanks to the successful human organ collection program, which also places the country among those with the lowest organ-rejection rates.

The expert said that 94 percent of kidney transplants in Cuba are carried out from dead donors and he stressed the Cuban people’s attitude in this sensitive action of offering the organs of their deceased relatives to extend the lives of other sick persons.

At present, 2 700 Cubans are under hemodialysis treatment; this figure grows by 10 percent annually because the two first causes for chronic kidney disease are high blood pressure and Diabetes Mellitus, two increasing conditions on the island due to the people’s style of life.

A research study revealed that the dialysis treatment for each patient translates into a cost of 20 thousand dollars annually for the country. The service is offered in 47 hospitals throughout the island, including mountainous areas.

According to international statistics kidney transplant is three times cheaper than dialysis treatment the expert explained.