Kazakhstan: Doctors Perform Nation’s First Triple Cross Kidney Swap Transplantation

For the first time in the history of Kazakhstani medicine, doctors have successfully performed a rare and complex operation — a triple cross kidney swap transplantation. The team of swapologists received a letter of thanks from President Qasym-Jomart Toqayev for their work and achievement, Orda.kz reports.

Cross-over kidney swap transplantation is a surgical method in which several unrelated donor-recipient pairs undergo transplantations simultaneously.

This approach is used when a relative is willing to donate a kidney but is medically incompatible with the recipient. In such cases, doctors search for another pair in a similar situation.

If cross-matching reveals compatibility across the pairs, a donor swap transplantation occurs, and the surgeries are performed simultaneously.

Only six countries in the world perform this type of complex swap. In Kazakhstan, the historic procedure took place on April 17, 2025, in Almaty at the A. N. Syzganov National Scientific Center of Surgery.

Renowned surgeon Bolatbek Baimakhanov led the operation.

President Toqayev marked the occasion as a milestone for national medicine, sending a letter of appreciation to the medical team.

This success was made possible by the dedicated work, deep knowledge and invaluable experience of our national specialists. I express my sincere gratitude to you. I am confident that you will continue to work tirelessly to strengthen the health of the nation,
 the congratulatory letter says.

With this successful procedure, Kazakhstan joins a select group of countries where such swap transplantations are performed, alongside the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Türkiye, and India.

Original Author: Aliya Askarova