Living liver donation
Information for people considering donating part of their liver while alive.
You can donate part of your liver to a patient with a serious liver disease. This can save a life. Read here what you can expect.
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How important is your liver?
Your liver is an important organ for metabolism. It ensures that nutrients are converted into substances your body needs. The liver also removes harmful and toxic substances from the blood. In addition, the liver is important for blood clotting.
Donating part of your liver
The liver is a special organ. If a part is removed, the liver can grow back into a normally functioning liver in 8 to 12 weeks. That is why you can donate part of the liver after you have been extensively screened.
Often a parent donates part of the liver to a child. But a partner, a family member, an acquaintance, or an anonymous donor can also donate part of the liver.
If you donate part of your liver to a child, this is 20 to 40% of your liver. If you donate to an adult, approximately 40 to 70% of your liver is removed.
Conditions for liver donation
You cannot just give part of your liver to someone else. There are legal rules to protect you and ensure a safe and responsible liver transplant. And you will undergo examinations to see if you are physically healthy enough and if you can handle the donation psychologically.
General conditions
- You are 18 years or older.
- You are able to explain well what you want.
- You have voluntarily decided to donate a part of your liver. No one has pressured you, and you are not receiving any money or gifts for it.
- You are healthy enough and in good condition.
- You are not addicted to alcohol or drugs.
- You do not have liver disease, blood disease, kidney disease, or blood clotting problems.
- You do not have an (hereditary) disease that might cause your liver to function poorly later on.
- You are not pregnant.
Compatible blood types
Your blood type and the recipient's blood type must be compatible. This does not mean they have to be exactly the same.
| Your blood type | You can donate to |
|---|---|
| A | A or AB |
| B | B or AB |
| AB | AB |
| O | A, B, AB, or O |
The rhesus factor (positive or negative) does not matter in this case.
Tissue typing and crossmatch
Before a liver transplant can take place, it is examined whether the donor and the recipient are a good match. This reduces the chance that the recipient's body will reject the new liver.
Two tests for this are:
- Tissue typing (HLA typing)
Blood tests are used to see how well your tissue matches that of the recipient. - Crossmatch
Test whether the recipient has antibodies against your liver. The blood of the donor and recipient is tested. In the event of a strong immune response (positive crossmatch), there is a very high chance that the liver will be rejected. In that case, a transplant is not possible.
Tissue typing is always performed. Whether a crossmatch is also performed varies per transplant center.
To whom can you donate a part of your liver?
You can donate a part of your liver while living to someone you know, for example, because your partner, child, family member, or friend has a liver disease. But you can also donate to someone you do not know.
Do you want to donate a part of your liver to someone you do not know? That is called an altruistic donor. The donor and the recipient remain unknown to each other. For the liver, you can register for this at the three hospitals that perform liver transplants: Erasmus MC, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), or University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG).
Weighing pros and cons
Giving a part of your liver to someone else is a beautiful gesture. But there is also a lot involved. View the pros and cons to make a well-informed decision.
Pros
For the recipient of a piece of your liver, there are advantages compared to a liver from a deceased donor.
A better life for someone else
You give someone a better life or can even save a life. This means a lot to this person. You also help the people around the patient. Are you giving a part of your liver to your partner or family member? Then life often becomes calmer and more normal for all of you again.
Surgery can be planned
It is an advantage that the transplant can be planned at a good time for both of you. The surgery is in the same hospital.
The liver usually works immediately after the surgery. With a transplant using an organ from a deceased donor, it can take a while before the liver works.
Positive for the waiting list
There are too few donor livers from deceased people. That is why there is a waiting list. Patients often have to wait a long time for a transplant. People still die while on the waiting list for a liver.
Living liver donation can be beneficial for patients on the waiting list for a liver from a deceased donor.
- Does an adult need a liver transplant? Then they will no longer be placed on the waiting list or will be removed from it.
- Is it a child? Then they will remain on the waiting list until the day of the surgery.
By donating a liver while alive, a liver becomes available sooner for someone else on the waiting list.
On the waiting list for a donor liver
New URLhttps://transplantatiestichting.nl/wachtlijst/orgaan/lever
Liver often lasts longer
If you give a part of a liver to someone else, it is often better. The liver from a living donor is of good quality. This is checked during the donor screening. As a result, a liver from a living donor generally lasts longer than a liver from someone who has passed away.
Disadvantages
Donating a part of your liver is a beautiful and valuable gesture. But there are also disadvantages. You will undergo surgery, and that always carries risks. You also need time to recover.
Medical examination required
Before you can donate, you will undergo extensive medical examinations. These take time. Sometimes something is discovered that you otherwise would not have known. That can be good, but it can also have unpleasant consequences.
Risks of surgery and recovery
With every surgery, something can go wrong, including this one. Usually, these are mild problems that resolve on their own or are easy to treat, but sometimes they are major problems.
Living without a gallbladder
During a liver donation, the surgeon also removes the gallbladder. The gallbladder helps with the digestion of fats. You can easily live without a gallbladder. But sometimes an adjustment in your diet is necessary.
When donating a small part of the left liver (for example, for a child), the gallbladder usually remains.
Relationship with recipient can change
Is the recipient someone you know? Keep in mind that the donation can change your relationship. You often develop a stronger bond. But tensions can also arise. For example, if the other person does not 'take good care of your liver' and lives unhealthily.
If your liver does not work as well as expected or you feel less well yourself after the surgery, this can be emotionally difficult for both of you.
“My sister-in-law donated part of her liver to my little daughter Ziva. And saved her life. The gratitude I feel is indescribable.”
Costs and reimbursements
Many of the expenses you incur as a donor are reimbursed, even if the donation does not ultimately go ahead.
Your health insurer pays the medical costs, such as the screening, surgery, and check-ups. You do not pay anything from your excess (deductible) for the donation.
Sometimes you have to spend extra money, such as on parking costs or for help with housework. It is also possible that you will temporarily have less income. You can apply for reimbursement for these types of things.
You do not have to make the choice to donate part of your liver alone. There are people who can think along with you and guide you.
Who can help you with the decision?
It often helps to talk about it with others. For example with:
- A living donation coordinator at one of the 3 liver transplant hospitals (ErasmusMC, LUMC, or UMCG).
- Your GP.
- Family, friends, or other people in your circle.
- Someone who has donated part of their liver themselves (ask the hospital about this).
Registering
Have you decided that you want to give part of your liver to someone else? Then you can register at a transplant hospital.
- Do you want to give a liver to someone you know? Then contact the transplant hospital of your recipient.
- Is it someone you do not know? Then register at a transplant hospital in the Netherlands.
Questions or registering?
Contact with transplant hospitals in the Netherlands that perform liver transplants:
- Groningen UMCG: Email or registration form
- Leiden LUMC: Email or registration form
- Rotterdam Erasmus MC: Contact and email
Good to know: You may change your mind and decide to stop at any time. Even if you have already undergone examinations. Even just before the surgery.
Decided to donate a liver?
Read about the examinations you will undergo at the hospital and how the surgery and recovery proceed.