Hepatologist Questions Internal Medicine

How long can it take to get a new liver?

I am a 67-year-old male who was told I need a new liver. How long can it take to get a new liver?

1 Answer

By far your best answer to this question is to log into unos.org the web-site for the united organ supply which actually "regulates" the distribution of organs in the fairest way possible. THe most important variable determining wait for transplant is the "MELD" (Mayo clinic End stage Liver Disease) Score which is a complicated calculation best done "digitally" involving 3 or 4 specific blood tests. However, other less importan variables influencing time to transplant include your blood type (strangely a rare type is better!), the cause of your liver disease, certain less common complications of liver disease, and, most unfairly still, what region of the country you might live in. Answering more specific than this would require more information beginning with the diagnosis leading to the need for a new liver