What Is a Living Donor Liver Transplant?

Liver transplant donations usually come from people who have recently died. These people agreed, sometime before their death, to participate in an organ donation program.

Some liver donations, however, come from people who are still living. These are called, appropriately, living donor liver transplants.

The living donor may donate part of their liver to someone who has severe liver problems or liver damage. Very often, the person who receives the liver is a relative.

Someone who receives a liver transplant from a living donor goes through the same evaluation process as someone who receives a liver from someone who has died (this is known as a cadaveric liver).

The donor must also go through an evaluation process which includes blood tests, imaging, and other diagnostic tools to make sure the liver is healthy.

The living donor must

• have the same blood type as the person who receives the liver,
• be 18-55 years old,
• have a healthy liver, and
• be healthy enough to tolerate the liver transplant surgery.

Benefits of living donor liver transplants

Living donor liver transplants offer

• more flexibility for the recipient because the procedure can be done in a sooner stage of liver disease,
• the possibility that the recipient may be able to stay at home until the date of the procedure,
• the probability of a shorter wait for the recipient.

How is a living donor liver transplant done?

About 50% of the donor's liver is removed through an incision in the abdomen. This liver tissue is called the graft or the liver allograft.

Both the remaining liver tissue and the tissue of the liver that has been donated will grow to normal size in 6-8 weeks.

Who cannot donate a liver?

There are some rules in place for donating a liver for transplantation. A person cannot donate if

• they don't have a matching blood type,
• they have liver disease or are an alcoholic,
• are chronic smokers,
• are obese,
• are pregnant.

Liver donors are not permitted receive compensation or payment of any kind, and the donor must have a strong family or social support system to help deal with the emotions that often accompany this type of surgery.

The success of living donor liver transplants in recent years has been encouraging. The mortality rate for those who have donated part of their liver now stands at approximately one percent.