Former mayor Marion Barry continues to be in stable condition after his kidney transplant at Howard University Hospital.

Clive Callender, the surgeon who led the team of surgeons that performed the transplant, said the patient was doing well. The former mayor felt well enough on Saturday morning to read the newspaper. Callender said in a press release that “the transplant had went well and that the donor was resting comfortably and there were no complications.”

D.C. Councilman Marion Barry underwent the transplant because of an ongoing case of a renal disease. The condition had caused his kidney to break down and Barry needed dialysis at Howard’s hospital three times a week since late last year. 

A spokesperson for Barry said the former mayor’s kidney problems were the result of diabetes and hypertension, two problems that Barry had confronted with for more than 20 years. 

According to statistics released by the National Kidney Foundation, the number of people diagnosed with renal failure continues to grow, reaching an estimated 90,000 new cases per year. The increase is mostly due to an increase in cases of diabetes and obesity, two main factors leading to kidney failure.

Marion Barry served as the second elected mayor of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991 and as the fourth mayor from 1995 to 1999. In 1990, he was arrested on drug charges. He was convicted of the charges and served six months in prison. In 1994, he returned to the mayoralty and served four more years.