Johnson City man in need of liver transplant; Living Donor Liver Transplant offers hope

Local resident Rick Aton, of Johnson City, N.Y., is in advanced stage and in desperate need of a liver transplant; time is running out for Rick. Thanks to the Living Donor Liver Transplantation program, an accepted and successful therapy for patients suffering from advanced liver disease; individuals who are awaiting a liver have a bit of hope.

Currently, in the United States, there are over 16,000 people registered for and waiting for a liver transplant with the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). This exceeds the supply of deceased organ donors that become available each year, with approximately 4,500 deceased donor livers arriving annually.

Ideally, all people with end stage liver disease, like Rick Aton, would be able to receive a liver from a deceased donor. This critical shortage of organs is an ongoing challenge for patients in critical stages for a transplant. 

The shortage of organs, according to UR Medicine at Strong Memorial Hospital, has directed medical professionals to look for options and solutions to this problem. Living Donor Liver Transplant (LDLT) is possible because of the unique ability of the liver to regenerate in humans after a segment is removed. 

In a release received from the Living Donor Coordinator at UR Medicine and Strong Memorial Hospital, they wrote, “This means that when a piece of the liver is removed from a healthy living donor, that part that remains in the donor will grow back or regenerate, and the segment transplanted in the recipient will also regenerate.

The first LDLT was performed in the United States in 1989, and involved an adult who donated a small segment of liver to a child. As a result of the successful experiences with live donor transplantation of children, adult-to-adult living liver donor transplant using the larger right segment of the liver evolved.

Individuals interested in being a liver donor undergo an evaluation to assess suitability and be sure they are healthy enough to donate.

To qualify, for more information, call (585) 275-5875.

In order to qualify as a living donor, an individual must have a compatible blood type; RH Positive, A and O blood types are compatible in this case.

The individual must be physically fit and in good general health; be older than 18 years of age and younger than 55; have a healthy body weight; have no significant medical or psychiatric problems; and must test negative for active or chronic hepatitis B and C, and can have no serious medical conditions such as diabetes, cancer, or heart disease.

If you have a loved one that is interested in getting more information about living liver donor transplant, they can contact the Living Donor Coordinator in the Transplant Office by calling (585) 275-5875.