Tufts Medical Center has received approval to perform living donor liver transplants effective immediately, the health care provider announced.

“By offering living donor liver transplantation, we are opening new pathways to life-saving care and providing hope to patients with end-stage liver disease who might otherwise face extended — and potentially fatal — wait times,” said Fredric Gordon, the hospital’s Chief of Abdominal Transplant Medicine and medical school’s Medical Director of Liver Transplantation. “Living donation allows us to accept more complex cases and transplant patients sooner, which strengthens our integrated care model and fosters seamless coordination across our Tufts Medicine network.”

The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network issued official approval for living donor liver transplants at Tufts on Thursday, allowing the hospital to begin the program immediately.

A living donor liver transplant occurs when a person elects to donate a portion of their healthy liver to another person — usually a family member — who has a diseased or injured organ, according to the Mayo Clinic. Since the liver regenerates, the donor’s remaining liver returns to normal size and capacity over the next few months, while the transplanted partial liver also grows to normal function in the recipient.

The living donor transplants are much rarer than the procedures from deceased donors, but allow patients to avoid long wait times.

These type of transplants extend life on average by 13 to 17 years and decrease mortality for patients with end-stage liver disease by 34%, according to JAMA Surgery research.

Tufts Medicine also cited recent statistics showing over 9,000 people currently waiting for a liver transplant in the U.S. and that an average of 2,000 people die each year before they can receive a new liver.

Tufts Chief of Abdominal Transplant and Hepatobiliary Surgery James Pomposelli said the hospital has “a highly-skilled and experienced transplant team with the expertise to transplant patients earlier — when they are healthier — improving outcomes and reducing mortality for those with advanced liver disease.”

Living donors undergo thorough health and psychological evaluation, and matching a donor to recipient involves age, blood type, organ size and other factors, the Mayo Clinic states.

Tufts Medical Center has the “highest volume adult heart transplant program in New England since 2000 and a kidney transplant legacy of more than 50 years,” Tufts stated. The liver transplant program also received certification from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2025.

“This is an exciting and important milestone in our efforts to further cement Tufts Medical Center as a hub of world-class transplant services,” said Tufts Medical Center President John Herman. “This achievement embodies our unwavering commitment to innovation, equity and compassionate care, as we continue to serve as a trusted destination for advanced liver transplant services.”

Other area hospitals also offer live donor liver transplant programs including Mass General Brigham, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Lahey Hospital, and Boston Children’s Hospital.

Livers and kidneys are the most common living donor organ transplant procedures, though living people can also donate tissues like skin and bone marrow, according to the Mayo Clinic.

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