Surgeons Perform Pakistan’s First Split Liver and Pancreatic Transplants

In a major milestone, surgeons at the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute and Research Centre (PKLI), Lahore, have performed the country’s first ‘split liver transplant’ as well as pancreatic transplant.

Dean and Chief Executive Officer PKLI Dr Faisal Saud Dar told a local media outlet that they performed Pakistan’s first split-liver transplant with the help of a liver donated by a young man, who was pronounced brain dead at a Rawalpindi hospital.

“We divided the vital organ into two and transplanted them to an adult and a little boy, who were facing liver failure,” he revealed.

Furthermore, the pancreas of the deceased 32-year-old male was successfully transplanted into a patient diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes. Dr Dar added that it was also the first pancreatic transplant in the history of Pakistan.

According to the Dean and Chief Executive Officer PKLI, the generous donor, Uzair Bin Yasin, had expressed his desire to donate all his vital organs, including the liver, pancreas, kidneys, and eyes after his passing.

Remarkably, his selfless act has resulted in saving the lives of seven individuals in Rawalpindi and Lahore. Moreover, two individuals were able to see again thanks to the corneas of the deceased, which were transplanted at the Shifa Eye Trust Hospital in Rawalpindi. His kidneys were transplanted to two separate patients experiencing renal failure at a private hospital in the garrison city.

“Deceased donor liver transplantation has been done before in Pakistan, but it is the first time that we retrieved a liver from the body of a deceased, transported it to around 400 kilometers away, and transplanted it into two patients simultaneously. Both the recipients are stable and recovering,” Dr Faisal Saud Dar said.

It is pertinent to mention that Dr. Dar is recognized as the trailblazer of liver transplantation in Pakistan. He has performed more than 2,000 liver transplants, including 1,700 liver transplants at different public and private hospitals in the country.

“A few years back, we performed Pakistan’s first liver auto-transplantation at Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) Karachi, where the diseased liver of a young man was retrieved and after surgical removal of cancerous parts, it was re-transplanted to the patient,” he told the national daily.

Dr. Dar described the deceased Uzair as a real hero. He also emphasized educating people that donating organs after death is a Sadqa-e-Jaria and a great service to humanity.