Organ Transplant Center

Organ Transplantation

Organ transplantation is one of the most important achievements of modern medicine. Our Organ Transplant Center at our hospital offers hope to thousands of patients with its services in this critical field. While performing liver and kidney transplants from living donors and cadavers, our center supports patients and their relatives at every stage of the process. Drawing attention to the importance of organ donation, our center also conducts studies to raise social awareness.

What is Organ Transplantation?

Organ transplantation is the process of replacing an organ that has lost its function in the body with a healthy organ. This plays a critical role in the treatment of life-threatening diseases. The transplanted organ can come from a living donor or a brain-dead donor. Transplantation is a complex and delicate process that offers patients a new chance of life.

Transplantation involves finding a suitable donor, the successful transplantation of the organ and the lifelong follow-up and treatment of the patient. A successful transplant can significantly improve a patient's quality of life and prolong life.

What are the Types of Organ Transplantation?

Organ transplants can be performed on organs such as the kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas and small intestine. Modern medicine can also transplant tissues such as cornea, bone marrow and skin. Kidney and liver transplants are currently performed in our center. In addition, stem cell transplantation is performed at our Bone Marrow Transplant Center and cornea transplantation is performed at our Eye Health Center.

Kidney Transplant

The kidneys are vital organs that clean the blood by filtering waste products from the body. Chronic kidney failure causes the kidneys to fail to perform this function. Kidney transplantation is the most effective method of treating this disease and allows patients to avoid dialysis. A kidney from a living or cadaver donor is transplanted into the patient's body.

Liver Transplant

The liver is the body's largest internal organ and performs many important functions such as digestion, metabolism, the immune system and the elimination of toxins. For serious liver diseases such as liver failure or liver cancer, liver transplantation is a life-saving treatment option.

Who Can Donate Organs?

Organ donation is an act that saves lives and improves quality of life. So who can take this meaningful action? Organ donation can basically be done in two different ways:

Live Organ Donation

Living organ donation is when a healthy person donates some or all of their organs, usually to a relative. Living donors usually donate part of their organs, such as a kidney or liver. In order to become a living organ donor, certain criteria must be met:

Age: Usually between 18-60 years old
Health status: Being physically and mentally healthy, not having any contagious disease or chronic illness
Blood group compatibility: Blood group compatibility with the recipient
Consanguinity: Consanguinity up to the fourth degree with the recipient (if no consanguinity, ethics committee approval is required)
Voluntary basis: Organ donation should be completely voluntary and without any financial compensation.

Living donors undergo a comprehensive medical evaluation to determine whether they are suitable for organ donation. This assessment is important to protect the donor's health and ensure that the transplant is successful.

Cadaveric Organ Donation

Cadaveric organ donation is the consent of a brain-dead person to use their organs for the treatment of other patients. In Turkey, organ donation depends on the will of the person while they are alive or the consent of their family after their death.

Carrying an organ donor card is an important step to document one's willingness to donate organs. However, in case of death, the consent of the family is also required.

Who Can Receive Organ Transplantation?

The decision for organ transplantation is made by a multidisciplinary team, taking into account many factors such as the patient's general health status, severity of organ failure, life expectancy, chances of success after transplantation, life expectancy, psychological status and immune system compatibility.

Chronic kidney failure: Kidney transplantation may be required if kidney function does not improve despite dialysis treatment.
Liver failure: Liver transplantation can be performed in cases of irreversible loss of liver function due to cirrhosis, liver cancer or other liver diseases.
Heart failure: Severe heart failure that cannot be controlled with medication and other methods may require a heart transplant.
Lung failure: Lung transplantation can be performed if lung function is severely impaired due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis or other lung diseases.
Pancreatic insufficiency: A pancreas transplant may be needed if the pancreas is unable to produce insulin due to type 1 diabetes or other pancreatic diseases.

How Does the Organ Transplant Process Work?

Organ transplantation is a complex and multi-stage process. While this process means a new beginning for the patient, it also involves steps that must be meticulously followed.

The transplant process begins with patient assessment and placement on the waiting list. Once a suitable organ is found, the patient is quickly operated on. After the transplant, the patient is followed up in intensive care and organ rejection is prevented with immunosuppressive drugs. Regular follow-ups continue after discharge. This process requires close cooperation between the hospital team, the patient and the patient's relatives.

What is the Quality of Life After Organ Transplantation?

For many patients, transplantation is an important milestone in their quality of life. The post-transplant period allows patients to reconnect with their lives and lead a more active and healthy life. However, this new life brings with it some changes and adaptations.

It may differ for each patient. It depends on the type of organ transplanted, the patient's general health and whether there are any post-operative complications. Usually, patients are followed in the intensive care unit for a few days after transplantation and then transferred to the ward. The length of hospital stay may vary depending on the patient's condition.

In the post-transplant period, patients may have to make some changes in their lives. These changes are important to ensure the healthy functioning of the new organ and to prevent complications. These changes include regular medication, doctor check-ups, infection prevention and adopting a healthy lifestyle.

What are the Risks of Organ Transplantation?

Organ transplantation, like any surgical procedure, carries some risks. The most important risk is the body's rejection of the transplanted organ. Other risks include infection, medication side effects and surgical complications. These risks can be minimized with transplants performed by an experienced team and regular follow-up. It is important for patients considering transplantation to discuss these risks in detail with their doctor.

What to Consider When Choosing a Transplant Center

Organ transplantation is an important life-changing decision. Therefore, choosing the right transplant center is critical for a successful transplant and a healthy life. Here are important factors to consider when choosing a transplant center:

Expert team: Make sure the center has a team experienced in organ transplantation. The expertise and experience of surgeons, nurses and other medical staff are important factors affecting transplant success.
Success rates: Research the center's transplant success rates and patient satisfaction. Success rates are an important indicator of the center's experience and quality. In addition, choosing centers with national and international accreditations is important for reliability.
Technological infrastructure: Make sure that the center uses the latest technologies and applies up-to-date treatment methods. Modern and well-equipped operating rooms, intensive care units and other medical facilities play an important role in post-transplant recovery.
Regular follow-up after transplantation: Patients' medication doses, laboratory tests and accessibility in case of problems are among the priorities of our center.

Why Choose Biruni University Hospital Organ Transplant Center?

Biruni University Hospital Organ Transplant Center is an important center in the field of kidney transplantation and liver transplantation with its experienced team, state-of-the-art technology and patient-oriented approach. We strive to offer the best treatment to our patients and continue to support them in their post-transplant lives.

You can contact us for more information about kidney transplantation and liver transplantation.