Is it possible to transplant liver

Most organ donors are adults and children who have agreed or their guardians have agreed to donate their organs after they die. If a child doesn't need an entire new liver, sometimes a living person, like a parent, can donate part of a liver. This is called a " living-related donor transplant.

If your child needs a liver transplant, your doctor will refer you to a transplant center. There, you'll meet the members of the transplant team , which usually includes:. The health care team will check to make sure that your child is healthy enough to have surgery and take the medicines needed after it.

The team will do tests such as:. The doctor also might do a biopsy , removing a tiny piece of tissue from the liver to examine under a microscope. The transplant evaluation lets the team learn as much about your child as possible. It's also a time for you and your child to learn about what will happen before, during, and after the transplant.

The transplant team is there to provide information and support. Be sure to ask if you don't understand something. If the transplant team decides your child is a good candidate, the next step is to find a donor. Your child's name will go on an organ waiting list. This list has the names of everyone who is waiting for a liver or other organs. A living donor evaluation is done when someone is interested in donating a piece of liver.

Your child might have to wait to find a liver that is a good match. The need for new livers is far greater than the number donated, so this can take a long time.

You'll stay in close touch with the doctors and the rest of the health care team. Make sure they know how to reach you at all times. When a liver is available, you'll need to move quickly. Keep a bag packed and be ready to go to the transplant hospital at a moment's notice. While you wait for a transplant, keep your child as healthy as possible. That way, he or she will be ready for transplant surgery when the time comes.

Help your child:. When you get to the hospital, the transplant team will prepare your child for surgery. They may run a few tests to be sure that the new liver is a good match. Then, your child goes to an operating room. In the operating room, your child will get anesthesia to sleep through the operation. The surgeon makes an incision cut in the belly and removes the sick liver. The new liver is placed, and the surgeon attaches blood vessels and bile ducts from the new liver to the other organs.

The incision will then be stitched closed. A child who gets part of a new liver will regenerate enough liver tissue to have a normal-sized liver within a few weeks of the transplant. Your in-depth digestive health guide will be in your inbox shortly.

You will also receive emails from Mayo Clinic on the latest health news, research, and care. Liver transplant surgery carries a risk of significant complications. There are risks associated with the procedure itself as well as with the drugs necessary to prevent rejection of the donor liver after the transplant. After a liver transplant, you'll take medications for the rest of your life to help prevent your body from rejecting the donated liver.

These anti-rejection medications can cause a variety of side effects, including:. Because anti-rejection drugs work by suppressing the immune system, they also increase your risk of infection. Your doctor may give you medications to help you fight infections. If your doctor recommends a liver transplant, you may be referred to a transplant center. You're also free to select a transplant center on your own or choose a center from your insurance company's list of preferred providers.

After you've selected a transplant center, you'll need an evaluation to determine whether you meet the center's eligibility requirements. Each transplant center has its own eligibility criteria. If you aren't accepted at one transplant center, you may undergo evaluation at another center. Once these tests and consultations are completed, the transplant center's selection committee meets to discuss your situation. The committee determines whether a liver transplant is the best treatment for you and whether you're healthy enough to undergo a transplant.

Doctors will use the results of your liver function tests and other factors to assess the severity of your illness, how urgently you need a transplant and your place on the liver transplant waiting list.

Your doctor will use a specific formula to determine your MELD scores, which can range from 6 to The scores estimate the risk of death within 90 days without a transplant. A high MELD score indicates the urgent need of a transplant. As deceased-donor organs become available, they are allocated according to MELD scores and classified by blood type. People with higher MELD scores are generally offered donated livers first.

Time spent on the liver transplant waiting list is used to break ties among people with the same MELD scores and blood type. Some liver conditions, such as liver cancer, may not result in a person getting a high MELD score. The transplant center can request additional MELD points for people with specific diseases if they meet defined exception criteria.

In addition, adults with acute liver failure are exempted from the MELD -based donor organ prioritization system and may be placed higher on the transplant waiting list according to the severity of their disease. The wait for a donor liver can vary greatly.

Some people wait days, while others wait months or may never receive a deceased-donor liver. As you wait for a new liver, your doctor will treat the complications of your liver failure to make you as comfortable as possible. Complications of end-stage liver failure are serious, and you may be frequently hospitalized. If your liver deteriorates, your MELD score is updated.

Living-donor liver transplants using a small portion of a liver from a healthy, living person account for a small percentage of liver transplants each year. Living-donor liver transplants were initially used for children needing a liver transplant because suitable deceased-donor organs are scarce. Now, it is also an option for adults who have end-stage liver disease.

Living-donor liver transplants offer an alternative to waiting for a deceased-donor liver, and allow the organ recipient to avoid possible health complications of waiting for a transplant.

The first step is to identify a living donor who is healthy and able to safely undergo a major surgical procedure. The donor's age, blood type and organ size also are critical considerations in determining whether you and the donor are a match for living-donor liver transplant. Most living liver donors are close family members or friends of the liver transplant candidate. If you have a family member or friend who is willing to donate part of his or her liver to you, talk to your transplant team about this option.

Living-donor transplants have good results, just as transplants using livers from deceased donors. But finding a living donor may be difficult. Living liver donors go through extensive evaluation to ensure they are a match with the organ recipient and to assess their physical and mental health. The surgery also carries significant risks for the donor. Another, less common, type of living-donor liver transplant is called a domino liver transplant.

In a domino liver transplant, you receive a liver from a living donor who has a disease called familial amyloidosis. Familial amyloidosis is a very rare disorder in which an abnormal protein accumulates and eventually damages the body's internal organs. The donor with familial amyloidosis receives a liver transplant to treat his or her condition. Then, the donor can give his or her liver to you in a domino liver transplant because the liver still functions well.

You may eventually develop symptoms of amyloidosis, but these symptoms usually take decades to develop. Doctors usually select recipients who are 55 years old or older and who aren't expected to develop symptoms before the end of their natural life expectancy. After your transplant, doctors will monitor you for signs of the condition. Doctors will evaluate you to determine if you may be a candidate for a domino liver transplant or if another treatment option would be more appropriate for your condition.

Whether you're waiting for a donated liver or your transplant surgery is already scheduled, work to stay healthy. Being healthy and as active as you're able can make it more likely you'll be ready for the transplant surgery when the time comes.

It may also help speed your recovery from surgery. Work to:. Stay in touch with your transplant team, and let them know of any significant changes in your health. If you're waiting for a donated liver, make sure the transplant team knows how to reach you at all times.

Keep your packed hospital bag handy, and make arrangements for transportation to the transplant center in advance. Within a couple of months after living-donor liver surgery, the donor's liver typically grows back to its normal size, volume and capacity.

If you're notified that a liver from a deceased donor is available, you'll be asked to come to the hospital immediately. Your health care team will admit you to the hospital, and you'll undergo an exam to make sure you're healthy enough for the surgery. Liver transplant surgery is done using general anesthesia, so you'll be sedated during the procedure.

The transplant surgeon makes a long incision across your abdomen to access your liver. The location and size of your incision varies according to your surgeon's approach and your own anatomy. The surgeon removes the diseased liver and places the donor liver in your body. Then the surgeon connects your blood vessels and bile ducts to the donor liver. Surgery can take up to 12 hours, depending on your situation. Once your new liver is in place, the surgeon uses stitches and staples to close the surgical incision.

In addition, a person high on the transplant list who has a rare blood type may be less likely to match with a donor. A person experiencing acute liver failure may be placed near the top of the list because their risk of death could be more imminent compared to someone with a chronic condition. Waiting for a liver transplant is a long process, but the surgery coordination happens quickly once you have a match. The liver can come from a deceased donor who had a healthy liver.

Sometimes a donated liver may be used for two recipients. The right side of the donated organ is more often used in adult recipients, while the smaller left side is more often used for children.

However, the living donor must be a good match in terms of blood type and other factors. Getting the transplant is just a part of the process of getting a new liver. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases , a three-week hospital stay is common after a transplant.

During this time, your doctor will evaluate the success of your operation, as well as determine your needs for home care. It may take up to one year until you feel healthier.

The greatest risk of this operation is transplant failure. A liver transplant also puts you at a high risk for infection. Other long-term complications can include:. After a liver transplant, your doctor may recommend lifestyle changes, including regular exercise and a healthy diet.

You can incorporate habits like these at any stage to boost your strength and overall health. Being physically healthy may reduce your chances for transplant rejection. This is called alcoholic liver…. Learn the specific drugs, their uses, risks, and more. New treatments over the past few years mean that Hep C today is much more manageable than it was in the past. Learn about new treatments and costs. Alcoholic hepatitis is an inflammatory condition of the liver. Get the facts on possible risk factors, complications, and treatment options.

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