Mayo Clinic completes paired liver transplant

(ABC 6 News) — A medical breakthrough at Mayo Clinic could now save the lives of many who are waiting for a liver transplant.

Surgeons recently completed their first paired liver transplant, meaning a living donor was able to give only part of their liver to a person in need.

“Based on the liver’s amazing ability to regenerate, once you do this operation, you remove part of the liver. The remaining liver, as well as the part that goes to the recipient, starts growing right away, and it becomes a full-size liver within about three to four weeks,” explained Dr. Timucin Taner.

Currently, there are about 10,000 people waiting on a liver transplant in the U.S. alone.