The histocompatibility laboratory (or HLA Lab) was developed in 1987 to provide tissue typing and crossmatching services for the Kidney Transplant Program at East Texas Medical Center. Both programs were created jointly to make transplant services more convenient and accessible for local patients.

All patients waiting for organs are listed with United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). Using the computer system provided by UNOS, patients are matched with the donors according to their HLA antigen typing or tissue typing. The final, and probably the most important, step is the crossmatch between the patient’s serum and donor cells. This will determine if the donor organ is compatible with the patient.

• Class I and Class II tissue typing by serologic and molecular methods
• Crossmatching by flow cytometry and serology
• Removal of metabolic waste materials for disposal
• Antibody testing by microbead array and flow cytometry

Carter BloodCare’s HLA laboratory is accredited through the American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (ASHI).

For questions regarding histocompatibility testing for organ transplantation, please call
903 363-0417.

The following links can also provide information about organ donation and histocompatibility.

Southwest Transplant Alliance
United Network for Organ Sharing
American Society of Transplantantion
National Marrow Donor Program
TransWeb
American Foundation for Donation and Transplantation
American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics