Greetings from the Korean Society for Transplantation

The Korean Society for Transplantation (KST) begins a new leap after its 50th anniversary, known in Korean culture as a time to understand the divine intentions in oneself.

Dear members of the Korean Society for Transplantation,

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all KST members for maintaining stable and tenacious organ transplantation in Korea with 53 years of experience and a proactive response amid the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2019. It is a great honor for me to lead the KST until 2023.

Since the enforcement of the Organ Transplant Act (Human Organ Transplant Act) in 2000, the Republic of Korea boasts one of the most exemplary organ transplantation systems worldwide after sequentially establishing and operating the Korea Organ Donation Agency (KODA, 2009), an independent organ procurement organization, Vital Link (2009) for promoting organ donation, and the Korea Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY, 2014) for organ transplant registration. In recent years, deceased donor organ transplants increased noticeably on top of living donor organ transplants. Accordingly, as brain-dead management and organ transplantation have been expedited together with living donor transplantation (living donor liver transplantation, laparoscopic/robotic living donor surgery, etc.), we are proud to show leading achievements both regionally and globally.

We intend to make a new leap forward for the KST based on our current position with the following projects.

First, Asian Transplant Week (ATW), which has grown as an international academic conference since 2016, has been successfully held as an online or field/online parallel conference despite the COVID-19 pandemic and is reborn as Asia's leading transplant-related academic conference in name and reality. The KST aims to strengthen ATW into Asia's leading transplant conference by recruiting foreign members and expanding the ATW International Research Fund.

Second, the Korean Journal of Transplantation (KJT) aims to concretize its potential to contribute to global organ transplant-related achievements, expanding from its well-established grounds in Korea's organ transplantation sector. After being formed in 1987, the KJT reorganized the editing and publication of the English version to an international level in 2020. In the future, we are committed to advancing as an internationally recognized specialist in organ transplantation through intensive investment and promotion of contributions.

Third, the KST contributes to improving the research capabilities of the KST members through various funds. Organ transplantation and transplantation immunity, which have evolved since the 21st century, are progressing faster and more extensively than ever. We shall quench the research thirst of KST members with various forms of aggressive research support measures.

Fourth, since enacting the Human Organ Transplant Act in 2000, many systems have been implemented while extensively revising and improving relevant regulations. Nevertheless, we still see room to reach a social consensus on organ donation and organ transplantation, and efforts are also needed to resolve it. Unlike other medical fields, organ transplantation must be operated while empathizing with the members of society in terms of sociological, humanistic, and economic values. The KST is destined to actively fulfill its role in matters requiring such social consensus.

With the growth of the past 50 years, the KST has differentiated its status from the past. On its trajectory, the future standing that the KST shall reach as a leap forward must be a new realm that exceeds our current expectations. The KST will strive relentlessly with its members for a new leap forward.

October 18, 2021