A 64-year-old man from Quebec has made history as the first patient in North America to undergo a liver transplant using a regenerated liver. This innovative technology has the potential to increase the number of available livers for transplant by dozens within its initial year of implementation.
Gérard Landry, a resident of Nouvelle in Quebec, had been battling liver issues for approximately 15 years, which ultimately led to cirrhosis and liver cancer. Just before his liver transplant surgery, Landry was informed by his doctor that the organ he was about to receive had been regenerated using a new machine, a groundbreaking procedure introduced at Montreal’s Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM).
Landry expressed his gratitude for the new technology, describing it as a “Christmas gift” from his doctor who had worked on the machine for several years.
The technology, known as Liver Assist, enables medical professionals to treat and evaluate a donated liver outside the body before transplantation. For Landry, this meant receiving a liver that may have otherwise been deemed too risky for transplantation.
Gérard Landry had been suffering from liver disease and cancer for 15 years. But now, he’s cancer-free thanks to a liver regenerated by a new machine – technology that could lead to more life-saving transplants.
Giving a donated liver a chance to recover
Dr. David Hénault, a specialist in hepatopancreatobiliary surgery and liver transplants at CHUM, spearheaded the project and conducted Landry’s surgery. He mentioned that the team had been preparing to utilize the technology for approximately three years.
The Liver Assist system functions by linking a donated liver to a machine that circulates an oxygen-rich fluid through the organ, potentially reversing damage caused by oxygen deprivation outside the body.
Following this, doctors can switch to a blood-based solution and evaluate the liver’s functionality under conditions that simulate the human body.
Hénault explained that Landry’s liver was especially compatible with the technology due to its vulnerability to oxygen deprivation during the organ transfer process.
Boost to number of available livers
CHUM carries out around 70 liver transplants annually. Hénault revealed that a study conducted in conjunction with Transplant Québec assessed previously rejected livers to determine which ones could potentially be salvaged using the new technology.
The team anticipates that the technology could render an additional 20 to 24 livers suitable for transplantation in its