BACKGROUND:

Highly HLA-sensitized kidney transplant candidates are difficult to desensitize, which reduces their chances of receiving a transplant.

METHODS:

We administered tocilizumab as a monotherapy (8 mg/kg once a mo) to 14 highly sensitized kidney transplant candidates. Highest mean fluorescence intensities of anti-HLA antibodies obtained before and after tocilizumab administration were compared from raw and diluted sera.

RESULTS:

The administration of tocilizumab significantly reduced dominant anti-HLA antibody sensitization. However, this decrease in mean fluorescence intensities was minor compared with the initial values.

CONCLUSIONS:

Tocilizumab as a monotherapy was not sufficient to allow highly sensitized kidney-transplant candidates to undergo transplantation and, therefore, was not an effective desensitization method.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:	Case Series / Case Control / Cohort
LANGUAGE:	English
ORGAN TYPE:	Kidney