Banner Good Samaritan Transplant Services has a team dedicated to providing the best care available to patients suffering from liver disease and those requiring a liver transplant. Our dedicated and experienced team of health care professionals includes hepatologists (physicians specializing in liver disease), nurse practitioners, physician assistants, transplant surgeons, transplant nurse coordinators, social workers, nutritionists, financial counselors, radiologists, and pharmacists.
Prior to transplantation, the liver transplant team thoroughly evaluates potential recipients. Pre-transplant testing gives a clear picture of the patient’s overall health status, and can identify potential problems before they occur. The pre-transplant evaluation also determines whether transplantation is truly in the best interest of the patient. The pre-transplant evaluation generally takes place over the course of two or three days on an outpatient basis. Some patients may be admitted to the hospital for completion of the evaluation if their medical condition warrants. Evaluation results are reviewed by the multi-disciplinary members of the Liver Transplant Candidate Selection Committee, and a decision is made regarding the patient’s candidacy.
If accepted for transplantation, the patient is listed with the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the national computerized waiting list that matches transplanted recipients with available organs.
While awaiting transplantation, the patient will be monitored by the team at the Liver Disease Center in collaboration with the patient’s own primary care physician and/or gastroenterologist. Patients and families are encouraged to take advantage of the many resources available to them during the waiting period, including transplant education and support groups.
Livers come from two sources: deceased donor and living donor. Deceased donors are individuals who have pronounced brain dead. Living donor is when a live person donates half of his/her liver to a person waiting on the liver transplant list. In the months following the transplant, both the donor and the recipient end up with a full sized liver, because of the ability of the liver to grow back to normal size. Living donors need to be closely related to the recipient or very close friends.
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