Hopkins performs 1st U.S. `6-way' transplants

Kidney patients receive organs of donors in `domino' swap

One of the recipients was Jeanne Heise of Atherton, Calif., who had spent 3 1/2 years on the waiting list at Stanford University Hospital. Her husband, Randall Bolten, was a willing donor but didn't match her blood and tissue.

From her hospital bed yesterday, Heise said she hadn't heard of swaps like these until a cousin sent her a newspaper article about Hopkins' five-way exchange. She and her husband, the brother of White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten, came to Hopkins for an evaluation in August. The couple found out a week ago Saturday that the transplant was imminent.

"I was cautiously optimistic because there are so many people involved," said Heise. "If someone gets sick or has a change of heart, the whole process falls apart."

But the operations occurred without delay.

Heise, who had been in kidney failure before the transplant, said she was feeling well and expected to be discharged Friday. She then will spend another three weeks in Baltimore as an outpatient.

[e-mail]