In general, about 75% of people who undergo liver transplant live for at least five years. That means that for every 100 people who receive a liver transplant for any reason, about 75 will live for five years and 25 will die within five years.
The long-term outlook for a liver transplant is generally good. More than 9 out of every 10 people are still alive after 1 year, around 8 in every 10 people live at least 5 years, and many people live for up to 20 years or more.
Liver transplant can have excellent outcomes. Recipients have been known to live a normal life over 30 years after the operation.
Most people live more than 10 years after a liver transplant and many live for up to 20 years or more.
Survival rates
86 percent still alive 1 year after surgery. 78 percent still alive 3 years after surgery. 72 percent still alive 5 years after the surgery. 53 percent still alive 20 years after the surgery.
Nationally, an 84-year-old patient holds the title of oldest liver recipient and a 96-year-old is the oldest transplant recipient ever, according to statistics from the United Network for Organ Sharing, or UNOS.
The overall graft survival rates at 1, 5, 10, 15, and 18 years were 70%, 59%, 49%, 44%, and 41%.
In summary, the leading causes of late deaths after transplant were graft failure, malignancy, cardiovascular disease and renal failure. Older age, diabetes, and renal insufficiency identified patients at highest risk of poor survival overall.
Retransplantation is a therapeutic option when a first liver graft fails. The second operation is technically more complex, and survival is shorter than that of the first graft, but in some cases it is the only treatment option for the patient.
A transplanted liver may be more sensitive to damage by chemicals, including alcohol. The transplantation team recommends that recipients avoid overuse of alcoholic beverages after transplantation.
One reason for this is that older adults with liver disease often have many other health challenges which make recovery from transplant surgery more difficult. However, researchers have recently reported successful liver transplants in older adults—even in people who are in their 80's.
Very common longer-term risks
Infections are very common, even many months or years after a liver transplant. The most common infections are chest or urine infections. These are usually fairly straightforward to treat with antibiotic tablets. Infections inside the liver transplant itself can be harder to treat.
The risk of rejection is highest in the first 6 months after a transplant. After this time, your body's immune system is less likely to recognise the liver as coming from another person. Chronic rejection happens in 2 in 100 patients.
Contents. Recovering from a liver transplant can be a long process, but most people will eventually be able to return to most of their normal activities and have a good quality of life.
Eligibility for Liver or Kidney Transplant will provide information about the other eligibility criteria. "There is no standard age limit to be transplanted.
How many lives can one organ donor save? One deceased organ donor can save up to eight lives! Two donated kidneys can free two patients from dialysis treatments. One donated liver can be split to go to two patients on the wait list.
Our overall 1-year patient survival rate after a second liver transplant was 55%, a result comparable to others reported in the literature. However, in the FK 506-treated group, the 1-year patient survival rate reached 72%.
However, relapse rates during the first 5 years after transplant in the United States have been documented in the range of 30% to 50%,1, 2, 3, 4 and return to alcohol use is associated with worse outcomes including graft injury and death.
Liver transplantation is an ultra-major operation and probably the most difficult of all transplant operations. The hospital mortality rate after liver transplantation has ranged from 2% to 16% 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, most series reporting a rate of about 10%.
Having a liver transplant is an emotional experience. Some patients find it very stressful and feel guilty and depressed, while others feel overjoyed. Sometimes, the new medicines you'll need to take for the transplant can change your mood.
The 1-, 5- and 10-year graft survival rates of liver transplant recipients who were younger than 65 years were 82.1%, 67.8% and 52.6%, respectively; for recipients who were 65 years or older they were 77.5%, 59.7% and 41.2%, respectively.
Three centers reported no difference in morbidity or mortality among LT recipients older than 70 years. However, some studies have identified prolonged hospital stays and increased mortality after transplant in patients older than 60 years.
Although there is no one single accepted age cut-off to define 'elderly', data suggests that recipients greater than age 60, or 65, or 70 are particularly vulnerable to poor outcomes in the presence of other medical comorbidities [2, 14].
It is a major operation and comes with surgical risks, like bleeding. Infections and bile duct complications are common after a liver transplant. You will need to take strong medicines to suppress your immune system. You may need further surgery to fix any problems.