Overview of Liver Transplant

When does a patient require a liver transplant?

Liver transplant is a treatment for patients diagnosed with Liver Cancer, acute liver failure or end-stage liver disease caused by conditions such as Viral Hepatitis, Cirrhosis or liver damage from alcohol or drug abuse.

Some indications for liver transplant are:

• Acute liver failure

• Liver malignancy

• Chronic non-cholestatic liver disease

• Chronic cholestatic liver diseases

• Metabolic liver diseases biliary atresia

Symptoms of liver failure

Unless the liver damage is fairly severe or advanced, diseases of the liver are often "silent" and patients may not be aware of any problems. Different liver diseases may affect some functions more than others, resulting in variability between patients.

Some symptoms include:

• Yellow discoloration of skin and urine (Jaundice)

• Easy bruising and bleeding, initially from the gums

• Massive bleeding from the gut

• Fluid buildup in the abdomen, legs and lungs

• Drowsiness, forgetfulness, lack of concentration, confusion and coma

• Increasing sensitivity with alcohol and drugs

• Serious infections

Eligibility of transplant

If your liver disease is progressive, liver transplantation may be the appropriate treatment. You will be referred to the Liver Transplant Team. where arrangements will be made for you to meet a Liver Specialist (Hepatologist) for an assessment.

A variety of tests will be carried out to confirm the diagnosis, assess the extent of your disease and gauge your suitability for liver transplantation. The assessment period may take up to 5-7 days in hospital.

Programme Highlights

• The SGH Liver Transplant Programme was established in 2005 and we did our first liver transplant on 15 February 2006. In April 2009, we did Asia's first combined heart-liver transplant on a patient with Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy, together with the Heart Transplant team at the National Heart Centre Singapore.

• Since then more than 90 life-saving transplants have been performed for patients with acute liver failure, end-stage liver disease or liver cancer. At present, more than 110 pre- and post-transplant patients are under the dedicated care of our multi-disciplinary liver transplant team.

• Performed Southeast Asia's first blood group incompatible living donor liver transplant in 2017

Contact Us

SingHealth Duke-NUS Transplant Centre
Tel: +65  6326 5194
Fax: +65  6220 0730
Email: sd.transplant.centre@singhealth.com.sg