Liver donation in which a part of the liver of a healthy person
is removed by an operation and used for transplant, is very safe.
The donor is in hospital for 7-10 days, rests at home for 2-3
weeks and is then as well as he was before the operation. The
liver regenerates (i.e., grows back to its normal size) within
2-3 weeks. The living liver donor should be a 18-55 years old,
willing and healthy family person weighing between 50-85 kg, should
not be overweight or obese (since such people tend to have fatty
livers that may not work well in the recipient), and should have
either the same blood group as the patient's or blood group "O".
The screening tests recommended for prospective donors are CBC,
PT, LFTs, Serum creatinine, HBsAg, HCV antibody, HIV I,II, Chest
X ray, ECG and Ultrasound of the abdomen. The final approval however,
will be given by Dr. Soin after further detailed testing at Delhi.
Cadaveric
donor waiting list
The SGRH has a long waiting list since cadaveric organs are
not frequently available. Priority on the list is decided on the
disease severity and first-come first served basis. Although foreigners
and Indians stand an equal chance of obtaining a cadaveric organ
under this system, the list is long and the wait may well be several
months or even a year. A long wait is logistically impossible
for most foreigners travelling to Delhi for transplant. Hence,
they are all advised to bring along suitable living donors.
