Be a Living Donor! Be a Hero!
Andaman, an Indian archipelago is well known by all means for its stunning beaches, pleasing marine ecosystem and tropical evergreen forests teeming with wildlife. Rated as one of the best tourist spots, most of the people here belong to the working salary group while 23% of population are diagnosed with Hepatitis B, a serious liver infection when left unattended it leads to liver cancer, cirrhosis and even death.
Nonetheless, the world is transforming with the advancements in science and technology that Living organ donation is now possible and it is affordable too. Living-donor liver transplant is a process where a healthy adult donates a portion of their liver to a patient with liver failure. Following the transplant, the donor’s liver will regenerate in a few months. This concept of living-donor liver transplants in fact reduces the amount of time spent on the transplant waiting list and allows patients to receive a transplant sooner.
A liver cirrhosis patient from Andaman who fits into a middle-income group travelled all the way to India and got admitted under Dr. Karthik Mathivanan at MGM Healthcare, Chennai to undergo liver transplantation. The patient’s wife was the living donor and she was heroic by being courageous to donate a portion of her liver and saved her husband’s life. During their course of stay in the hospital, the entire team provided appropriate surgical and medical care as well as comfort which led to the speedy recovery of both the donor as well as the recipient.
This advanced treatment which is cost effective is now available not just for liver but also for kidney transplants. As Clinicians we are duty-bound to spreading the right knowledge which can lead to early detection of Hepatitis B and other liver diseases which is then 100% curable and also reassuring people about how they can contribute in saving a life by being a living organ donor. By disseminating this vital information to the inhabitants will help the future generations to lead a healthy life by following a better lifestyle.
