Immediately after transplantation, the body's immune system tries to destroy the foreign organ-a process called rejection. To stop rejection and protect the new organ, transplant patients take drugs to suppress the immune system. Although the benefits of immunosuppressive drugs cannot be denied, the debilitating side effects of these drugs cannot be ignored. Cyclosporine, for example, may damage the very kidney it's supposed to protect. Its other adverse effects include elevated blood pressure, nausea, hearing loss, acne, body hair growth, and low white blood cell and platelet counts.
Prednisone often causes stomach upset as well as gastric or duodenal ulcers.
Imuran is known to induce nausea, fatigue, and fever. That's not all. When you suppress the immune system, you may open the door to a wide variety of life-threatening bacterial and viral infections, as well as cancer. After one year, about 76 percent of transplanted kidneys are still functioning, versus only 50 percent of transplanted pancreases. When a transplanted pancreas fails, the person goes back to insulin injections.