Last month, a 17-year-old girl died at Duke University MedicalCenter after receiving a heart–lung transplant from anincompatible donor. Her blood type was O, the donor's was A,and the mismatch was not recognized until after the transplantoperation was over. In rare situations, ABO-incompatible transplantationshave been performed intentionally. But in this case it was notintentional. A severe rejection reaction and multiple complicationsfollowed, and the patient died. The tragic event became a nationalnews story. When a medical mistake receives this much attention,it affects the medical profession and even public policy.
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