Patients with severe liver failure may benefit from liver transplantation even if they have multiple organ failures, suggests a new study co-led by UCL researchers.
Okay so obviously the phrasing of the title is crazy but the study is actually fascinating
The premise is that donor livers are very scarce, so whenever one becomes available we’re forced to choose who will get it out of the many who need it
A prevailing result of this tragic necessary decision has been that patients with multiple organ failures are usually denied livers since they are considered unlikely to survive long with the replacement liver, if they even survive the surgery in the first place. But this study actually directly examined that, and found that patients with multiple organ failures (up to a point) actually see significantly improved survival odds, and thus should be considered when a donor becomes available
Okay so obviously the phrasing of the title is crazy but the study is actually fascinating
The premise is that donor livers are very scarce, so whenever one becomes available we’re forced to choose who will get it out of the many who need it
A prevailing result of this tragic necessary decision has been that patients with multiple organ failures are usually denied livers since they are considered unlikely to survive long with the replacement liver, if they even survive the surgery in the first place. But this study actually directly examined that, and found that patients with multiple organ failures (up to a point) actually see significantly improved survival odds, and thus should be considered when a donor becomes available
Thanks for the explanation. I figured there had to be more to it, but didn’t have the energy to dig into it.