Current status of kidney transplantation in Japan in 2015: the data of the Kidney Transplant Registry Committee, Japanese Society for Clinical Renal Transplantation and the Japan Society for Transplantation

The first deceased and living donor kidney transplants were performed in 1956 and 1964 in Japan, respectively. Larger numbers of transplants were performed after the introduction of cyclosporine in 1983. After that, the number has gradually and steadily increased and 1661 transplants were performed in 2015. In addition, the outcomes have improved year by year. The indications for transplantation have also expanded in various aspects, such as recipient and donor age, primary diseases, ABO incompatible and highly sensitized cases, and preemptive transplant. We here report the current status of kidney transplantation in Japan. The number of transplants, detail transplant characteristics in the past decade, and outcomes are described.