A 64-year-old man from Quebec has made history as the first individual in North America to undergo a liver transplant with a regenerated liver, thanks to an innovative technology that could potentially increase the availability of transplantable livers by dozens within its initial year. Gérard Landry, a resident of Nouvelle in Quebec, had been grappling with liver issues for approximately 15 years, which had progressed to cirrhosis and liver cancer. Just before his liver transplant surgery at Montreal’s Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM), Landry was informed by his doctor that the liver he would receive had been regenerated using a groundbreaking machine.
The pioneering technology, known as Liver Assist, enables medical professionals to treat and evaluate a donated liver outside the body before transplantation. This advancement allowed Landry to receive an organ that might have been deemed too risky for transplantation otherwise. Dr. David Hénault, a hepatopancreatobiliary surgeon and liver transplant specialist at CHUM, spearheaded the project and conducted Landry’s surgery. The Liver Assist system functions by connecting a donated liver to a machine that circulates an oxygen-rich fluid through the organ, potentially reversing some of the damage caused by oxygen deprivation during the organ’s extracorporeal period.
The technology facilitates a transition to a blood-based solution, enabling doctors to assess the liver’s functionality under conditions mimicking the human body. The use of this technology could significantly increase the number of available livers for transplantation, with an estimated 20 to 24 additional livers potentially becoming viable for transplant in the first year of implementation. This number is anticipated to rise as the technology becomes more widespread.
Dr. Hénault emphasized that the new technology could enhance outcomes, lower complications, reduce reoperations, and shorten hospital stays for suitable patients. Following his successful transplant, Landry exhibited swift signs of recovery, with his post-operative blood work surpassing expectations. As Landry progresses in his recovery in Montreal and anticipates returning home to Gaspésie, he hopes his story will inspire conversations about organ donation, underscoring the critical role of donated organs in life-saving procedures.