PATIENTS
Information We Needed When Facing Liver Transplant
- Understanding Living Donor Liver Transplant
- Top US Transplant Centers for Living Donor Liver Transplant
- How to Compare Liver Transplant Centers
- How US Transplant Centers Are Increasing the Number of Living Donor Liver Transplants
- How to Find a Donor
- Latest Innovations Regarding Living Donor Liver Transplant
- Life After Transplant: Diet, Travel, Lifestyle, Follow-Up Care, etc
We have gathered this content from multiple trusted resources to bring you the latest accurate information about liver donor liver transplant in the simplest format:
Understanding Living Donor Liver Transplant:
- What Does the Liver Do? (Ted-Ed)
- Living Donation in Liver Transplantation (New York Presbyterian)
- Benefits of Living Transplantation (New York Presbyterian)
- Ask the Experts: Living-Donor Liver Transplant (American Liver Foundation, August 2021)
- Living Organ Donation Overview (UNOS, April 2021)
- Living Donor Liver Transplant: How it is Done and Why it Makes Sense (UCSF, February 2020)
- Living Donor Transplant Types – Directed, Nondirected, Paired and Domino (WebMD, September 2021)
- Pros & Cons of Living Donor Liver Transplants (WebMD, December 2019)
- Liver Transplant Glossary of Terms (UCSF Health)
Top US Transplant Centers for Living Donor Liver Transplant:
In terms of volume, the top ten transplant centers accounted for 301 or 49.8% of the 604 living donor liver transplants performed in 2024.
| Center Name | Living Donor Liver Transplants in 2024 | Living Donor Liver Transplants in 2025 (as of 7/16/25) |
| University of Pittsburgh Medical Center | 77 | 42 |
| University Hospital, University of TX Health Sciences Center | 66 | 35 |
| University of California San Francisco Medical Center | 28 | 8 |
| VCU Health System Authority, VCUMC | 24 | 14 |
| Northwestern Memorial Hospital | 17 | 11 |
| Johns Hopkins Hospital | 17 | 9 |
| NY Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia Univ. Medical Center | 29 | 26 |
| Baylor University Medical Center | 15 | 8 |
| University of Colorado Hospital/Health Science Center | 14 | 6 |
| Keck Hospital of USC | 14 | 4 |
Source:
UNOS, July 16, 2025. UNOS’ online database
UNet, contains Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network data regarding every organ donation and transplant event occurring in the U.S. since October 1, 1987. You can examine data nationally, by region, by state/category or by transplant center.
- The Most Active Living Donor Liver Transplant Programs (UNOS, February 2020)
How to Compare Liver Transplant Centers:
The Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients allows you to find and compare the 148 liver transplant programs across the U.S. You can quickly compare them in terms of:
- Number of deceased donor transplants in a year
- Number of living donor transplants in a year
- Survival on the waitlist
- Getting a deceased donor transplant faster
- One year liver survival rate
The OPTN/SRTR Annual Data Report is a joint publication by SRTR and the UNOS staff. The report contains detailed annual data and trends for each type of transplant along with detailed information about living donors and deceased donors. The annual report is typically published in January of each year. Here is the 2019 report for liver.
How US Transplant Centers Are Increasing the Number of Living Donor Liver Transplants:
- Increasing awareness of living donor liver transplant. For example, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has developed a television commercial which airs across the country.
- Making it safer and easier for people to donate:
- Many transplant centers are using a laparoscopic liver donor procedure which has many benefits vs. conventional open surgery for the donor. The process is much less invasive than the conventional open surgery technique, and it significantly reduces recovery time for the living donor. It also results in a smaller incision and scar.
- Screening multiple donors at one time vs. one at a time in order to find a donor faster.
- Offering paired exchange within a center (e.g. NY Presbyterian) or across multiple locations of a center (e.g. Mayo Clinic has 3 locations across MN and FL). Unlike living donor kidney transplant, paired exchanges between different centers and donor chains are rare but growing. For example, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center performed a four part living donor liver transplant exchange/chain in April 2020.
- Considering cross-blood type living donor transplants. South and East Asia are finding success with this type of transplant.
- What’s Behind the Rise in Living Organ Donation? (UNOS, January 2020)
How to Find a Donor:
- Discussing Living Donation With Family and Friends (UNOS)
- How to Find a Living Donor: Making Your Transplant Happen (UNOS)
- Best Practices to Approach Potential Donors: How Do I Find a Living Liver Donor? (Watch second half of webinar, American Liver Foundation, August 2021)
Latest Innovations Regarding Living Donor Liver Transplant:
- Expanding the Number of Available Organs:
- Labs are starting to grow human organs from skin cells.
- In January 2022 a team of US doctors successfully transplanted a gene-edited pig heart into a patient with terminal heart disease.
- egenesis is working on using pig organs in humans.
- Progress is being made with donor liver transplant chains especially at NY Presbyterian and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
- Transplant centers are using new ways to preserve donated organs. Rather than put them on ice after removal, they are using a machine to pump oxygen and blood through them to keep them in optimal condition.
Life After Transplant: Diet, Travel, Lifestyle, Follow-Up Care, etc:
- Post-transplant health & wellness webinar – part 1 (UNOS, May 2021).
- Post-transplant health & wellness webinar – part 2 (UNOS, July 2021).