Living Liver Donation
Sharing part of your liver may save the life of someone you love
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Become a Liver Donor: Share a Lifesaving Gift
Thousands of people are waiting for a liver transplant. But there are not enough donated livers from deceased donors to meet the demand. Live liver donation can help change this.
Dr. Roger Jenkins performed the first successful live donor liver transplantation in New England in 1998. Since then, we have performed more than 380 live donor liver transplantations for adult recipients. We are also the live donor team for live donor liver transplantation for pediatric recipients at Boston Children’s Hospital.
What is Live Liver Donation?
Live liver donation involves giving a portion of your liver to someone waiting for a liver transplant. A liver can regenerate. Within two to four weeks, liver function returns to normal. And within a year, the organ will be back to its regular size. Your liver recipient will have a new liver, as well.
Live liver donation helps recipients get a new liver sooner than they would on the waiting list. And we can schedule a live liver transplant when your recipient is in the best possible health. That’s when they’re least likely to have complications. They avoid the continued health deterioration that inevitably occurs while waiting for suitable liver.
Other people on the waiting list for a liver benefit, too. Living liver donation shortens the waiting list and allows someone else to get their liver sooner than they otherwise would. This means, as a donor, you may actually save two lives.
Living Liver Donation at Lahey Clinic
If you’re interested in donating a portion of your liver to someone in need, Lahey offers a live liver donation program. We’ve been performing these procedures for more than a quarter century, meaning you’ll benefit from our experience and expertise.
Whether to become a liver donor is your decision alone. We offer a complete evaluation to make sure your liver is suitable for donation and that undergoing major surgery is likely to be safe for you. We also ensure you know about the potential benefits and risks so you can make an informed decision about proceeding. If you do decide to donate, we continue to follow up with you to make sure you remain healthy.
Inside Lahey’s Living Liver Donor Transplant Program: What You Need to Know
Lahey Clinic is home to one of the most experienced living liver donor transplant programs in the country. In this video, members of the transplant team walk you through the program’s history, the donor evaluation process, and the life-changing benefits of living liver donation. Whether you're considering becoming a donor or simply want to learn more, this overview offers expert insight, supportive guidance, and helpful resources for taking the next step.
Benefits and Risks of Liver Donation
There are benefits and risks of living liver donations. It’s important that you be aware of both.
You’re Giving the Gift of Life
By becoming a live donor, you shorten the time a recipient spends on the liver transplant waiting list. You also increase the likelihood that their transplant will be successful. Survival rates are higher for recipients whose transplant comes from a live donor. You also help another person on the wait list. Your recipient comes off the list, so someone else will be higher on the list when a deceased donor’s liver becomes available.
Your Liver Will Regenerate
The liver is the only solid internal organ capable of full regeneration. This means the remaining portion of your liver will grow back after surgery. As little as 30 percent of your liver can regrow to its original volume. After you donate, your liver function returns to normal in two to four weeks. It should return to nearly its full original volume in about a year.
Your Financial Burden Will Be Low
Your recipient’s insurance company typically pays for the entire donation process. This includes all pre-transplant evaluations, surgery, in-hospital recovery and follow-up care.
Some donors can get financial assistance from programs that help with travel, lodging and food expenses related to the live donor evaluation, surgery and follow-up appointments. Our live donor financial coordinator will give you more information during your donor evaluation.
There is a Time Commitment and Personal Risk Involved
Donating a portion of your liver is an invasive surgery. It takes time and effort to recover. The pre-transplant evaluation is a necessary process that takes you away from other activities. Your hospital stay lasts from four to seven days, but you may not be able to return to work or school for six to 10 weeks after your hospital discharge.
You Will Have Some Pain
Pain is normal after surgery. Even with pain medication, you will feel discomfort while your incision heals. You may have fatigue as you recover, as well. But most patients report feeling completely normal after two to three months.
You May Need to Make Lifestyle Changes
As you prepare for liver donation, you may need to make some lifestyle changes. For example, you must avoid recreational drugs, tobacco and alcohol. After surgery, you can’t drink alcohol for a full year, in order to allow your liver to recover. You will gradually be able to return to your normal activities as you recover. We recommend not participating in contact sports for at least 10 to 12 weeks after surgery.
Complications Are Possible
Complications can range from mild to severe and are related to the amount of liver tissue surgeons remove.
You have a 10% to 35% risk of developing a mild complication, such as an infection following donation. These types of complications are easily treatable within the hospital. And our team closely monitors you to detect them early.
Going under anesthesia has its own set of possible complications. Our team of anesthesiologists is present during and after surgery to monitor you.
There is a 5% risk of developing a serious complication that would require additional treatment. Serious complications include bleeding or injury to your remaining liver, bile leak or fluid in your abdomen, or a hernia at your incision site.
At Lahey, we watch you closely for signs of complications and won’t discharge you until these risks have safely diminished.
You should also know that there is a rare, but real, possibility that you could have a catastrophic complication that could lead you to require a liver transplant or result in death. We discuss all risks with you and take every possible precaution to keep you safe.
Live Liver Donation Requirements
To be a liver donor, you must meet several criteria.
We require that you:
- Be a willing adult between ages 18 and 60.
- Be at a healthy weight (Body mass index [BMI]) less than 32).
- Be in good physical and psychological health.
- Be prepared to commit to the pre-donation evaluation process, surgery and recovery.
- Be willing to abstain from alcohol until fully recovered.
- Have a compatible blood type.
- Have healthy liver and kidney function.
To donate a liver, you must have a blood type that’s compatible with your recipient’s and liver anatomy that’s suitable for donation.
This chart shows the blood compatibility requirements.
|
Recipient Blood Type |
Acceptable Donor Blood Type |
|
O |
O |
|
A |
O, A |
|
B |
O, B |
|
AB |
O, A, B, AB |
What to Expect
We make certain you know what to expect before, during and after your liver donation.
To determine if you meet the liver donation requirements, you have a comprehensive evaluation. You meet with all members of our live liver donor team. You also undergo several tests, including lab and imaging tests, such as:
- Blood tests
- Chest X-ray
- CT scan
- Electrocardiogram (EKG)
- Physical exam
- Tissue matching
Completing the entire donor evaluation may take up to two weeks.
If you qualify as a donor and decide to proceed, here’s what you can expect during your donation operation:
Arrival and Pre-Surgery Care
We normally schedule live donor surgery in the morning. We admit you and your liver recipient to the hospital’s pre-op area two hours before surgery. Your family may accompany you.
Before surgery, we start an IV and may need to shave your abdominal area. Once we take you into the operating room (OR), your family waits in the surgical waiting area. The live liver donor coordinator meets with them there and discusses a plan to keep them updated on the progress of your surgery.
In the Operating Room
Our anesthesiologists will sedate you in the OR. Once you’re asleep, the team inserts a tube in your throat that connects to a machine (ventilator) that helps you breathe. You’ll also have a tube (Foley catheter) inserted into your urethra and bladder to allow urine to drain during the surgery.
We use laparoscopic-assisted techniques during surgery. This reduces the size of your incision, compared to traditional surgery. Once surgeons remove a portion of your liver, they close the incision with absorbable stitches. You will have a drain on the inside of your body to allow fluids that accumulate during your recovery. In most cases, we remove the drain before you leave the hospital.
You typically spend four to seven days in the hospital after surgery. Before we can discharge you, you must be able to urinate, walk and eat on your own. We require that you arrange for a friend or family member to take you home when the time comes. We don’t allow you to drive yourself.
You will need to visit the hospital about a week after your discharge and again about two to three weeks later. If you live far away, we can make arrangements to accommodate you at a nearby hotel.
Liver Donation Recovery Timeline
Here is what you can generally expect during your recovery:
In two to three weeks: Your liver function returns to normal. We allow you to drive again once you regain your physical strength and are no longer taking pain medications.
In six to 12 weeks: Your activity level increases, and you may wish to return to work or school. Some people heal more quickly than others, so this time can vary from donor to donor.
In two to three months: Your liver will regenerate at least 80% of its original size. Most patients report feeling “completely normal” by this point, and nearly all donors are back to work or school.
If you are a woman who is planning to become pregnant, we recommend you wait six months before conceiving. This will allow your body to recover from the donation.
