Indian sister donates kidney to Bangladeshi brother in rare cross-border transplant
Despite concerns over strained relations between Bangladesh and India, the brother and sister expressed hope that ties between the two neighbouring countries would improve in the future.
A Bangladeshi man has received a new lease of life after his elder sister, an Indian citizen, donated one of her kidneys in a rare cross-border transplant carried out in Kolkata, reports Times of India.
Swapan Biswas, a 43-year-old fish trader from Satkhira, underwent a successful kidney transplant on 3 January at RN Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences (RTIICS).
Swapan and his sister Anupa Biswas were separated decades ago due during the 1971 Liberation War. When their parents fled to India during the war, their mother was pregnant with Anupa. The family took shelter in Burdwan before eventually returning to Bangladesh years later. Anupa, who had been married in Burdwan by then, remained in India, while the rest of the family settled back in Satkhira.
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Recalling the separation, Swapan said he was still a child when the family returned to Bangladesh, leaving his sister behind due to her marriage.
According to the report, Swapan developed end-stage kidney failure in 2018 and had been undergoing regular dialysis since then. His condition forced him to stop working, and he was financially supported by his three sisters, including Anupa and two others living in Bangladesh.
When doctors advised a kidney transplant, Anupa, now 55, volunteered to be the donor. Medical tests revealed a 100% genetic match between the siblings, making them an ideal donor-recipient pair.
According to doctors, while organ donation between blood relatives is not uncommon, this was the first known case in eastern India involving a donor and recipient from two different countries. The siblings had to complete a lengthy legal process to obtain a no-objection certificate for the transplant.
The transplant was performed by a medical team that included nephrologist Pratik Das and renal transplant surgeon Tarshid Ali Jahangir. The donor was discharged about a week after the operation, while the recipient was declared fit for discharge later. Swapan will remain in Kolkata for follow-up care for a few more weeks.
Despite concerns over strained relations between Bangladesh and India, the brother and sister expressed hope that ties between the two neighbouring countries would improve in the future.
