New Organ Donor Allocation System (MELD) Results in Six-Fold Increase in Transplants for Liver Cancer Patients
A six-fold increase in the number of liver cancer patients receiving transplants has been linked to a method of donor organ allocation which was initiated in early 2002. The research finding was recently published in Gastroenterology, official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association.
The present allocation system -- dubbed MELD, for Model for End-Stage Liver Disease -- is primarily responsible for a transplant rate of approximately 26% among liver cancer patients. Prior to the MELD prioritizing system, that rate was only 4.6% at its highest.
Authors of this latest research note that the introduction of the MELD priority system has also been responsible for securing high survival rates following transplantation for people with liver cancer. One function of the system is that arbitrarily high priority scores are assigned to patients with early-stage liver cancer -- patients who are highly likely to benefit from transplantation -- that priority score then gives them greater access to available organs.
Researchers also note that additional studies are needed to determine conclusively whether these patients receive enough collective benefit to justify the harm caused to other patients by the use of scarce organs.
Previously on the DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog, we have posted articles related to:
- Why obese patients wait longer than most for kidney transplants
- Evidence that 1 in 5 U.S. transplant centers fail to meet federal standards
- How lax organ inspection poses huge risks for patients
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