Efficacy and Safety of Everolimus+EC-MPS After Early CNI Elimination vs EC-MPS +Tacrolimus in Renal Transplant Recipients

Inclusion criteria: * Recipients of de novo cadaveric, living unrelated or living related kidney transplants * Females capable of becoming pregnant must have a negative serum pregnancy test within 7 days prior to or at screening, and are required to practice an approved method of birth control for the duration of the study and for a period of 6 weeks following discontinuation of study medication, even where there has been a history of infertility. * Patients who are willing and able to participate in the study and from whom written informed consent has been obtained. Exclusion criteria: * More than one previous renal transplantation * Multi-organ recipients (e.g., kidney and pancreas) or previous transplant with any other organ, different from kidney * Donor age: \< 5 years or \> 65 years * Graft loss due to immunological reasons in the first year after transplantation (in case of secondary transplantation) * Patients who had received an investigational drug within 4 weeks of the baseline period * Patients who are recipients of A-B-O incompatible transplants or T cell cross-match positive transplants * Patients with already existing antibodies against the HLA-type of the receiving transplant * Patients with any known hypersensitivity to Simulect®, Certican®, mycophenolic acid, Prograf®, other drugs similar to Certican® (e.g., macrolides), or other components of the formulations. * Patients who have received an investigational immunosuppressive drug within four weeks prior to study entry (Baseline visit 1) * Patients with thrombocytopenia (platelets \< 75,000/mm³), or an absolute neutrophil count of \< 1,500/mm³ or leucopenia (leucocytes \< 2,500/mm³), or hemoglobin \< 6 g/dL * Patients with preexisting lung disease (alveolitis, fibrosis) Patients with symptoms of significant somatic or mental illness. Inability to cooperate or communicate with the investigator, who are unlikely to comply with the study requirements, or who are unable to give informed consent * Patients with a history of malignancy during the last five years, except squamous or basal cell carcinoma of the skin * Patients who are HIV positive or Hepatitis B surface antigen positive or Hepatitis C virus positive. Recipients of organs from donors who test positive for Hepatitis B surface antigen or Hepatitis C are excluded. * Evidence of severe liver disease (incl. abnormal liver enzyme profile, i.e. AST, ALT or total bilirubin \> 3 times UNL) * Females of childbearing potential who are planning to become pregnant, who are pregnant or lactating, and/or who are unwilling to use effective means of contraception (see also section 8.2) * Presence of a clinically significant infection requiring continued therapy, severe diarrhea, active peptic ulcer disease, or uncontrolled diabetes mellitus that in the opinion of the investigator would interfere with the appropriate conduct of the study * Evidence of drug or alcohol abuse * Patients receiving drugs known to interact with Tacrolimus and/or everolimus according to the list provided in Appendix 3 to this protocol. * Other protocol-defined inclusion/exclusion criteria may apply