A living organ donor is someone who donates a kidney or partial liver to another person – usually a relative or close friend – who has end-stage kidney disease or liver failure. This program helps with the financial stress of recovering from donating an organ.
You can give this lifesaving gift to a relative, a friend or even a stranger. Thousands of people in the United States are waiting for a liver from a deceased donor – but patients with a living donor have a much shorter wait time and a better chance for a successful liver transplant.
No, blood relation isn't necessary between the donor and recipient. Parents, children and other relatives as well as spouses and unrelated friends have donated portions of their livers. There does not appear to be a lower risk of rejection if the donor is a blood relative.
Living donation is possible because the liver is the only organ that can regenerate itself. An adult may be able to donate a portion of their liver to a child or another adult.
You don't have to be related to someone to donate a lobe of your liver. In fact, you can donate to family and even friends as long as you have a close emotional connection with your recipient.
Live Liver Donation Requirements
Donors must have a compatible blood type and liver anatomy that is suitable for donation. Potential liver donors must not have any serious medical conditions, such as liver disease, diabetes, heart disease or cancer.
a serious heart and/or lung condition, such as heart failure or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) a serious mental health or behavioural condition that means you would be unlikely to be able to follow the medical recommendations for life after a liver transplant.
Many living liver donors return to work on a part-time basis as early as four to six weeks after surgery. Heavy lifting or strenuous physical activity is restricted for six weeks and until the donor is cleared to do so. Returning to full-time work may take up to two months, depending on the nature of the donor's work.
Although mortality has traditionally been estimated at 1 in 250 for living donation, a more recent survey found a 1 in 1,000 chance of death among liver donors at experienced centers, and a morbidity rate of approximately 30%.
Livers from female donors yielded significantly poorer results, with 2-year graft survival of female to male 55% (95% CI, 45% to 67%); female to female, 64% (95% CI, 54% to 77%); male to male, 72% (95% CI, 66% to 78%); and male to female, 78% (95% CI, 70% to 88%).
You don't have to have the exact blood type as the person who needs a new liver, but you need to be what's called "compatible." This can be figured out with a simple blood test.
Nausea. Wound infection. Bleeding that may require transfusion. Blood clots.
A living related transplant is 'better' than a deceased donor transplant in that it is more likely to work. The best donor is an identical twin, as the tissue type is identical.
Is there an age limit to becoming an organ donor? No: There is no age limit for donation or to sign up. In 2021, one out of every three people who donated organs was over the age of 50.
Is there an age limit for liver transplantation? The age limit is individualized as it varies with a patient's overall health condition. However, it is rare to offer liver transplant to someone greater than 70 years old.
In general, about 75% of people who undergo liver transplant live for at least five years. That means that for every 100 people who receive a liver transplant for any reason, about 75 will live for five years and 25 will die within five years.
Livers from live donorsare usually of excellent quality because donors are evaluated extensively and only allowed to donate if they are in very good health. Living donation not only saves the life of the recipient; it also frees up a liver for a patient on the waiting list who does not have that option.
In summary, the leading causes of late deaths after transplant were graft failure, malignancy, cardiovascular disease and renal failure. Older age, diabetes, and renal insufficiency identified patients at highest risk of poor survival overall.
The 1-, 5- and 10-year graft survival rates of liver transplant recipients who were younger than 65 years were 82.1%, 67.8% and 52.6%, respectively; for recipients who were 65 years or older they were 77.5%, 59.7% and 41.2%, respectively.
Even though live liver donation is considered a very safe operation, it involves major surgery and is associated with complications, which may include: Possible allergic reaction to anesthesia. Pain and discomfort.
There is pain after liver transplant surgery, however it is generally not as severe as with other abdominal surgeries. This is because nerves are severed during the initial abdominal incision causing numbness of the skin around the abdomen. These nerves regenerate over the following six months and sensation returns.
In this study, however, even many years after donation, many were reporting problems that were clearly linked to their original surgery, she said. Seventy-eight donors, or 15 percent, reported donation-related medical problems – most often hernias, digestive issues, chronic diarrhea, and problems with scar tissue.
Recovering from a liver transplant can be a long process, but most people will eventually be able to return to most of their normal activities and have a good quality of life. It can take up to a year to fully recover, although you'll usually be able to start gradually building up your activities after a few weeks.
Advancing age, sarcopenia, acute on chronic liver failure, and non-liver-related medical co-morbidities are common conditions that arise while on the wait-list that can render a patient too sick for transplant.
Waiting time for your liver transplant can vary from a single day to months or years, until a suitable donor is available. While waiting for a transplant, you will return to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital for regular follow-ups (usually monthly).