Delhi-NCR hospital performs world’s first laparoscopic dual-lobe living donor liver transplant

In a significant medical achievement, Fortis Hospital Noida has performed what it says is the world’s first laparoscopic dual-lobe living donor liver transplant, successfully treating a 51-year-old man from Kyrgyzstan suffering from end-stage liver disease caused by chronic Hepatitis B infection.

The patient had been admitted with advanced liver failure accompanied by jaundice, recurrent ascites, gastrointestinal bleeding and episodes of altered consciousness. Detailed medical evaluation revealed severe liver damage, portal hypertension, thrombocytopenia and impaired blood clotting.

As a single donor liver graft was considered insufficient to meet the patient’s metabolic requirements, doctors decided to perform a dual-lobe living donor liver transplant using liver grafts donated by his two daughters, aged 20 and 21.

The procedure was led by Dr Vivek Vij, Chairman, Liver Transplant and Hepatobiliary Sciences, along with a multidisciplinary transplant team at the hospital.

In what the hospital described as a first-of-its-kind approach globally, liver donation surgeries for both donors were carried out using minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques instead of conventional open surgery. The donor surgeries lasted around five hours each, while the recipient’s transplant surgery was completed in nearly eight hours.

Both donors recovered well and were discharged in good health, while the recipient was discharged in a stable condition. Histopathological examination of the removed liver later confirmed chronic hepatitis caused by Hepatitis B and Hepatitis D infections, along with advanced liver damage.

“Dual-lobe living donor liver transplantation is among the most technically demanding procedures in transplant surgery and is performed only at a handful of centres worldwide. Accomplishing it through a completely laparoscopic approach for both donors marks a major milestone in living donor liver transplantation,” said Dr Vij.

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He said the minimally invasive approach reduces pain, blood loss, hospital stay and recovery time for donors while maintaining donor safety. According to him, the procedure could expand treatment options for patients requiring larger liver graft volumes while improving recovery outcomes for living donors.

Mohit Singh, Zonal Director of Fortis Hospital Noida, said the procedure reflected advances in complex liver transplantation and strengthened the hospital’s capabilities in handling challenging transplant cases.

According to the hospital, the successful transplant was made possible through the coordinated efforts of its liver transplant surgeons, anaesthetists, critical care specialists, nursing staff and other multidisciplinary teams involved in the patient’s treatment.