Q: How many successful liver transplants have been done so far in India? Which are the hospitals that have these facilities? What are the survival rates (approximate number of years) after a liver transplant in India? How reliable are the liver transplants in India with respect to good post-operative care, facilities etc.

A:Please understand that liver transplant is in its infancy in our country. However, there are two good centres in India, namely Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and Apollo Hospital where successful liver transplants have been done. There are two aspects in liver transplant surgery. First, there is no defined end point with chronic liver disease as is dialysis for kidney transplant. By the time they go in to coma it is too late for transplantation. Real difficulty is for patients to realise that chronic liver disease has reached end stage and unless they have a transplant they will die within 6 months to 1 year. At this stage the patients are quite well and withstand a major liver transplant operation successfully.