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Liver transplant - Let's support each other

Transplants | Last Active: 4 days ago | Replies (1617)

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@silverwoman

I'm 30 months post transplant and it sounds as if gman66 and I may have a common thread to our stories. I too had HCC after many years of cirrhosis due to PBC. The miracle workers at Mayo Jacksonville were able to eradicate my liver tumors with Y-90 treatment but, as wondrous as that was, it didn't mean I could immediately be put on the transplant list. I had to remain cancer-free for a period of time stipulated by UNOS in order to be put on the list. I finally met the criteria after the required time elapsed and was very fortunate that I didn't have to wait long (just a matter of weeks) before my call came that they had an organ donor for me. The waiting to satisfy the UNOS requirement is a bit tense, but the way I look at it I would likely have been dead six months after my diagnosis and every day that the Y-90 bought me was one I didn't have before. I went for the transplant because it was my understanding that once a cirrhotic liver starts to develop HCC tumors, it will in all probability continue to develop them, so transplant was my best option for living a longer, healthier life. It is also relevant to my case that I never felt very ill from my PBC; my liver did a very good job of compensating, so I wasn't debilitated and was a good candidate for transplant; that matters.

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Replies to "I'm 30 months post transplant and it sounds as if gman66 and I may have a..."

I am almost 8 months out from my transplant and short of two years diagnosed with Stage 3 liver cirrhosis. I did not have HCC, but have PBC and two other autoimmune diseases. I agree that being in the best health possible is important for being a candidate and recover post transplant. When I was diagnosed, my liver doctor told me to eat healthy (which I was doing) and exercise (which admittedly I wasn’t much into other than walking my dog).

I added more protein to my diet, more walking, and gentle exercises. Even when I was ill enough to be on the list, I continued my regimen as best I could. So, if you can, I encourage you to walk and exercise if you don’t already. And, of course only within any limitations you may have. I’ve found talking with my liver doctors and nutritionists about exercise and diet to be valuable.

This series of articles was also very beneficial for me: Nutrition and the liver transplant patient. Part one: pre-transplant.
May 2015; Lynsey Spillman at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. I’ve attached the pdf.

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LiverTransplantPart1 (LiverTransplantPart1.May2015.pdf)