Liver Transplant for PBC

Overview
Liver transplant may be an option for people with end-stage liver disease (chronic liver failure) from primary biliary cholangitis. The liver transplant can be done using a portion of liver from either a healthy living donor with a compatible blood type or from someone who died recently. If a living donor is used, both your transplanted lobe and their remaining lobe will grow to full size. To receive a liver from someone who’s died, you’ll be placed on a national waiting list.

What does it involve?
A liver transplant procedure can last four to 12 hours, depending on your condition and if you have scar tissue from previous surgeries. The surgery will take place while you’re sleeping under general anesthesia. Several tubes will be placed to help with certain body functions during the procedure and for a few days after, including a breathing tube, IV lines to deliver fluids and medication, a catheter (flexible tube) to drain urine, and tubes to drain abdominal fluid and blood. Your surgeon will make one incision across your abdomen, remove your damaged liver and gallbladder, and place the donated liver. It’s not necessary to have a gallbladder, so that organ won’t be replaced. Your incision will then be closed.

After receiving a liver transplant, you’ll go to intensive care and may stay there several days to be closely monitored. After that, you’ll spend another one to three weeks in a recovery unit. You’ll drink liquids and slowly begin to take in solid foods, and your bowels should start working again in a few days.

After you return home, your health care team will continue to do blood tests to check on your new liver. They’ll also make sure you know how to take care of your incision wound, understand your treatment regimen, and watch for signs of infection and organ rejection.

You’ll take some of your post-surgery medications for the rest of your life. These drugs, called immunosuppressants, will help keep your body from attacking your new liver. Most people can resume all their previous activities within six to 12 months.

Side effects
The greatest risks of a liver transplant are related to the surgery itself, including blood clots, bleeding, injury to the bile ducts, and liver failure. Complications after surgery include organ rejection, infections, high blood pressure and blood sugar, kidney problems, and increased cancer risk. You should contact your health care provider if you experience fever, swelling or discoloration around your incision site, any bleeding, vomiting or diarrhea, or jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes).

Results
Liver transplantation extends the life of people who would otherwise die of liver failure. After a liver transplant, studies show 75 percent of people are still alive after five years, and more than half (53 percent) live for 20 years.

For more details about this treatment, visit:

Liver Transplant — American Liver Foundation
https://liverfoundation.org/liver-diseases/trea...

Liver Transplantation — Cleveland Clinic
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatment...

Liver Transplant — Johns Hopkins Medicine
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatmen...