Liver Transplant

How long do patients wait for a transplant?

In the UK, nearly a fifth of all listed patients die or are considered too sick before a graft is available.

Waiting times vary by country and reflect

donor numbers,

clinical caseloads,

recipient weight and

blood group

the organ listing or allocation strategies.

The sickest patients benefit most from transplantation.

Adults in the UK on average wait 95 days (www.uktransplant.org.uk/ukt/newsroom/fact_sheets).

Clinical management of patients on the waiting list aims to minimise new complications:

diuretic-precipitated renal failure, prompt treatment of infection.

Surveillance for varices and hepatocellular carcinoma