Home / Health / Revolutionary Technique Saves More Donor Livers
Revolutionary Technique Saves More Donor Livers
8 Jul
Summary
- New NHS technique doubles usable donor livers retrieved.
- Oxygenated blood perfusion rejuvenates livers before removal.
- 51% lower risk of transplant failure with this method.
A groundbreaking technique, now approved for the NHS, is set to save hundreds of organs for life-saving transplants. Surgeons can now perfuse livers with oxygenated blood before removal from consenting donors, a method that has demonstrated a doubling of usable livers retrieved.
This new process, known as Abdominal Normothermic Regional Perfusion (ANRP), allows livers to recover from damage within the donor's body. It also enables doctors to assess organ function before removal, with recipients experiencing a 51% lower risk of transplant failure after 12 months.
This initiative offers critical hope as the NHS transplant waiting list reaches a record high, with over 8,000 individuals awaiting organs. Previously, many donated livers were lost due to damage from interrupted blood flow during preservation.
NHS Blood and Transplant estimates that the widespread adoption of ANRP and similar techniques could lead to approximately 150 additional liver transplants annually across the UK.
