Machine keeps human livers alive for a week outside body

[Xemxija]

Some of you may find the following article of interest:

"It may sound like something out of a sci-fi movie, but scientists have developed a machine that can keep human livers alive for one week outside the body."

irishnews.com/magazine/scie...

X.

[Hidden]

Hope - Maybe there'll come a day when we could book ourselves in for an MOT. Trolley wait, on the ramp plugged in, parts out, flush & reconditioned on the bench then replaced. One never knows? My mad. 🤔

Thanks for posting. 👍

[Xemxija in reply to Hidden]

I think this will eventually happen, though not in our generation. Artificial organs will also become available as we evolve into cybernetic organisms ...

[davianne in reply to Hidden]

Oh Ofecky, thou do make I larf🤣🤣👍👍

[Hidden in reply to davianne]

Laughter: The Best Medicine

Laughter reduces pain, increases performance, connects people emotionally, and improves the flow of oxygen to the heart and brain. 🤕🤔

[davianne in reply to Hidden]

Blimey.....increases performance.....is it as good as viagra❓❓❓🤣🤣🤣

Not that I know how good or not viagra is of course👼👼👼

But I agree with the rest👍👍👍

[Hidden in reply to davianne]

Don't Know Nothing About The Blues. 🙄

[davianne in reply to Hidden]

I met a girl who sang the blues,

I asked her for some happy news,

She just smiled and turned away..........

[Hidden]

Very interesting, let's hope this happens one xxxx

[alfredthegreat]

Hi. Addenbrookes have been using a perfusion machine since May 2018

I don't think it's advanced as the machine you mention but it was a huge step forward.

Donor livers are put onto the perfusion machine as soon as possible. Then the donor liver can be checked for viability with no further deterioration taking place while the patient for transplant is going through the appropriate tests and being made ready for the operating theatre.

I was lucky enough to be among the patients that benefitted from the use of this machine in in it's first few months of operation.

It enabled Addenbrookes to considerably increase the amount of liver transplants carried out at their hospital.

The machine that you have brought to our attention sounds absolutely marvellous! Not only keeping donor livers from deteriorating but actually helping what could very well have been a non viable liver to repair itself and then be used in transplantation!

This will have a tremendous affect on shortening patients time on the waiting list!

Technological advancement never ceases to amaze!!

Thank you for posting this information.

Alf.

[Hidden in reply to alfredthegreat]

Perfeck. A Perfusion test pilot. Proof of the pudding. 👍

[davianne in reply to Hidden]

If we could buy a 3D printed one, I'd be first in the queue🤑🤑🤑, About the only way I'd get one 😢😢😢

[Hidden in reply to davianne]

Designer Label. A little Jag on it. 🤭

[alfredthegreat in reply to davianne]

Things are moving so fast that you just never know!

[Yellowsydney in reply to alfredthegreat]

Hi Alfredthegreat, my liver was part of the organox trial at Addenbrookes may 2017 it's doing fine. It was transported on ice (only 10 miles)then put on the machine to be warmed up and checked, it came from a 74 year old and was moderately fatty so possibly wouldn't have been used.

Hilary

[alfredthegreat in reply to Yellowsydney]

That's amazing Hilary!

It's fantastic what a difference the perfusion machine makes

[RosaRugosa]

My husband used to have a job working on such projects. One project was to put kidneys in an ideal environment, where the kidney could wait indefinitely for the best transplant recipient, and be in top health for transplantation. This was a temporary job, so I don't know how the project is going.

The liver should be one of the easiest organs to regrow in a lab. Livers have amazing regenerative ability. I a person with cirrhosis has even a small amount of healthy liver tissues, in theory it should be possible to grow that tissue into an entire liver in a lab. Then, the patient would have a new liver grown from their own tissue, with no rejection issues.

The problem is, cirrhosis is often stigmatized as a disease caused by drinking, even when it has completely different causes. It is considered low-priority, and often the patient's fault. There isn't much research on regrowing livers. Instead, the liver research comes mostly from drug companies, whose goal is to produce expensive drugs that have to be taken for long periods (or lifelong.)

Liver patients need to band together and insist on more research -- nonprofit research -- into treating liver illness. This approach has worked well for many other patients groups, such as people with AIDS and with breast cancer.

Does anyone know of an advocacy group working for more non-profit research into liver problems? If not, we should start one!!!

[Dallo100]

Hi had my transplant in March 2016 performed by Dr Thamara Perera using the perfusion machine which was a trial. britishlivertrust.org.uk/ne...

[Hidden]

Thank you for sharing.

Here is the Trust press release on this from last week:

britishlivertrust.org.uk/br...

Warm wishes

Trust1