NEW DELHI: An 86-year-old woman, who was a doctor, became one of the oldest cadaveric donors in the city by donating her liver and kidney at the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital after her death, which in turn saved the life of a 42-year-old man.
A resident of South Delhi, the woman was declared brain dead on September 12 at a city hospital after suffering from an acute stroke after which the family expressed keenness to fulfill her wish of donating her liver and kidney after death.
According to Apollo Hospital, the 42-year-old recipient was a patient of Hepatitis C and had suffered from liver failure and was in urgent need of a transplant. “The usual acceptable age for a cadaver organ transplant is 65 years. People beyond that age are considered as marginal donors. They are only eligible for cadaver organ donation after evaluation of organ health, owing to possible pre-existing co-morbid conditions,” said Dr Neerav Goyal, senior consultant, Liver Transplant, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, who led the transplant.
“When we got to know that there is a cadaver donor for the liver, we decided to evaluate the organ to examine whether it would be suitable for donation. The biopsy revealed that the lady had a perfectly healthy liver, hence we decided to perform the procedure. The organ was transported to the hospital and a successful procedure for liver transplant was done,” Dr Goyal added. Four days since the transplant, the patient’s body has responded well and after compulsory post-transplant care the patient will be discharged, the hospital stated.