In a landmark medical achievement, Greece has successfully performed its first liver transplant from a living donor. The operation, which involved a father donating a portion of his liver to his daughter, took place at Athens’s Laiko Hospital. Surgeon Professor Georgios Sotiropoulos led the procedure with the assistance of German Professor Dieter Broering. Deputy Health Minister Irene Agapidaki expressed hope for the well-being of the father and daughter and highlighted the significant development and hope it brings to many in the country. Living-donor liver transplants offer an alternative to waiting for a deceased-donor liver and can reduce the risk of health complications and improve post-surgery outcomes.
Living-donor liver transplants involve the removal of a portion of a healthy living person’s liver and its transplantation into someone whose liver is failing. The donor’s remaining liver regrows, while the transplanted portion grows and restores normal liver function in the recipient. This procedure has become an established treatment for liver failure patients, especially in Asia where the shortage of deceased donor livers is more severe. Although living-donor liver transplants are less common in the United States, they are increasingly being used to treat adult patients with liver failure. This recent success in Greece brings hope to many and highlights the potential of living-donor liver transplants in saving lives.
