The UW Transplant program is a national leader in the field of transplantation. The UW Transplant program was a pioneer in reduced-liver transplants for children and first began to perform reduced liver transplants in 1989.  The first adult-to-adult live donor liver transplant was performed at UW Hospital in 1999.

 

As of November, 2012, there were more than 200 patients on the waitlist for a liver transplant in Wisconsin and nearly 16,000 in the nation. According to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, over 17,000 were on the list throughout the nation. The waiting list for liver transplants is continually changing as the most severe patients are always being placed at the top of the list.

 

While the average wait time for seriously-ill patients listed with the UW Health Liver Transplant program tends to be lower than other programs in the region, patients with less severe disease may have a significant wait time. Receiving a living donor liver transplant provides an advantage compared to remaining on the transplant waiting list. It provides an opportunity for patients to be transplanted before becoming seriously ill.