Liver
Looking for Facts about Liver Transplants - Transplant 8-27-23
Mayo Clinic Phoenix
Organ Transplants with Hepatitis C and/or mismatch CMV - 2020 thru 2023
****** Topic of this post: Do you have “Post Transplant issues?”******
- Especially 2023 Transplant Patients
***2020 - Mayo Clinic - New Organ Transplant Study
***2020 was a record year for solid organ transplants across the three Mayo Clinic campuses in Arizona, Florida, and Minnesota.
***2023 - Mayo Clinic transplant programs achieve World Record Volumes***
My “Liver Transplant” was due to PSC – an Autoimmune disease
***Liver Transplant Date: – 8-27-23***
***MELD Score on 7-21-23: (14)***
Liver: DCD
CMV: D+/R- *MM (Cytomegalovirus)
EBV: D+/R+
COSSI: Positive
MTB: Negative
CIT: 19hr 4m (pump 15hr 20m)
WIT: 30m
My Post-Transplant Ongoing Issues are:
- Before the transplant, there was no issue
- Seemed to start overnight at 4 months post-transplant
***Severe Daily Joint Pain – All Joints***
***(Joints in my hands are really bad in the morning) ***
- 4 months Post Transplant was the timeframe of stopping many of the medications per the post-transplant schedule
***General Unwell Feeling***
- Do my best to push through it anyway
- Exercise seems to help
***Low Platelets since Transplant***
- Constant bruising
- Excessive bleeding
- A lot of Nose Bleeds
***CMS Virus several times***
- 1st occurrence was 1-15-2024
- Happened right after stopping several medications at 4 months post-transplant
- Viral load was 2850 & 2650 over 3 to 4 weeks
- They put me on Valcyte to fight it
- It has come back 6 times since then
***Constant Bloating and Digestive issues***
- Heartburn a lot
***I’m pretty sure I’m having vision issues***
***Mayo Clinic 2020 Study - deems Hepatitis C is no longer a barrier for transplant.
This study shows that livers from donors exposed to HCV expand the donor pool.
Conclusions:
HCV-seropositive donors into HCV-seronegative recipients.
Transplantation of liver grafts from HCV-seropositive donors into HCV-seronegative recipients resulted in excellent short-term outcomes. Antiviral therapy was effective and well tolerated. Careful ongoing assessment and prompt initiation of antiviral therapy are recommended. Longer term follow-up in carefully conducted clinical trials is still required to confirm these results.
***2023 - Mayo Clinic transplant programs achieve record volumes***
Mayo Clinic, as the largest integrated transplant center in the country represented by sites in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota, performed a collective 1,987 organ transplants in 2023.
Hepatitis C is a viral condition that leads to inflammation of the liver.
***A vaccine to prevent hepatitis C doesn’t yet exist***
***Symptoms of hepatitis C:***
-fever
-fatigue
-nausea or stomach pain
-loss of appetite
-yellowed skin or eyes (jaundice)
***If your body doesn’t clear the virus, acute hepatitis C will become chronic.
An estimated 55 to 85% of people who contract HCV will eventually develop chronic hepatitis C.
***Symptoms of hepatitis C:***
-difficulty concentrating or remembering things (brain fog)
-difficulty sleeping
-general weakness (malaise)
-joint pain and muscle aches
-unexpected mood changes, including feelings of anxiety or depression
-unexplained weight loss
Antiviral treatment for HCV infection is still restrictive and expensive
Antiviral treatment for HCV infection is still restrictive and expensive
Mayo Clinic not only transplants HCV-seropositive livers to patients who are HCV-seronegative but also now performs heart, lung and kidney transplants in similar circumstances. To date, according to Dr. Pungpapong, more than 150 patients have undergone solid organ transplants using allografts from donors who are HCV-seropositive at the three Mayo Clinic transplant centers with excellent post-transplant outcomes, and the number is growing rapidly.
Conclusions:
Transplantation of liver grafts from HCV-seropositive donors into HCV-seronegative recipients resulted in excellent short-term outcomes. Antiviral therapy was effective and well tolerated. Careful ongoing assessment and prompt initiation of antiviral therapy are recommended. Longer term follow-up in carefully conducted clinical trials is still required to confirm these results.
