Selena Gomez reveals recent kidney transplant

Selena Gomez reveals recent kidney transplant

On Thursday 14th September 2017 the American singer/actor Selena Gomez revealed to her 127 million followers on Instagram that she had recently had a kidney transplant because of her lupus. The kidney was donated by her best friend, Francia Raisa. Selena revealed that she had been diagnosed with lupus in 2015 and last year she made headlines after cancelling her world tour early due to depression and anxiety related to her condition.
The announcement received a massive response online and coverage by national media. LUPUS UK was approached by a number of different broadcasters to arrange interviews with clinicians and patients. This proved to be a fantastic opportunity for raising awareness of lupus in the UK. You can watch or listen to some of these interviews by following the links;

Channel 5 News (14/09/2017)
Interview with Amy Baker
WATCH

BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat (14/09/2017)
Interview with Natascha McIntyre DeVitto (starts at 4:37)
LISTEN

BBC Breakfast (15/09/2017)
Interview with Prof Ian Bruce and Pauline Obi
WATCH

BBC Radio 5Live Breakfast Show (15/09/2017)
Interview with Dr Chris Wincup (starts at 48:45) & interview with Monique McKay and her brother Nick (1:39:33)
LISTEN

There were also interviews broadcast on BBC News, BBC Newsround and Sky News Radio on 14/09/2017.

David Jayne (Consultant Nephrologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital and Professor of Clinical Autoimmunity at Cambridge University’s School of Medicine) provided the following statement about the story;

“The long-term outlook for patients with lupus nephritis has improved considerably but a small number still go on to lose their kidney function (end stage renal disease). This usually happens some years after their lupus diagnosis and there are many reasons why some patients do not respond well to the drugs while others do."

"They then require a transplant or support by dialysis until a transplant becomes available. The good news is that kidney transplantation is very successful in lupus patients, and lupus patients do as well as any patients of a similar age suffering from other types of kidney disease. Their lupus typically stops being a problem but they do need to take medicines to stop the transplant rejecting and attend for regular follow-up in a transplant clinic."

"A really important point is the early detection of lupus attacking the kidneys and the immediate start of effective treatment. This provides the patient with their best chance of avoiding kidney damage, but this is not always possible and the search for newer and better drugs continues.”


If you require more information, our booklet ‘LUPUS and the Kidneys’ is available to read or download using the link here. Alternatively you can request a physical copy by contacting us.

We are extremely grateful to Selena Gomez for her bravery in sharing her experiences with lupus and helping to raise awareness of the impact the disease can have. We would like to wish both her and Francia Raisa a speedy recovery.