A dedicated team of Hong Kong medical professionals recently executed a remarkable surgical marathon, completing four complex organ transplants—two livers, one lung, and one kidney—within a challenging 38-hour period at Queen Mary Hospital. This intensive, multi-disciplinary effort, involving approximately 50 specialists from various fields, underscores both the immense skill of the city’s transplant teams and the critical, often unmet need for organ donation across the region.
The surgical feat, which occurred earlier this month, highlights the intricate logistics involved in transforming scarce donations into life-saving procedures. The intensive relay required close coordination across specialties ranging from surgery and cardiothoracics to anesthesiology and clinical psychology.
A Patient’s Journey: The Impact of Organ Donation
For recipients, these procedures offer a dramatic chance at renewed life. Among those whose lives have been transformed is a 48-year-old woman, identified as Ms. Kong, who received a donated liver. Ms. Kong had endured three years on the waiting list after being diagnosed with severe hepatic cysts in 2022.
Her condition had deteriorated significantly; the severe cystic swelling compressed her lungs, causing breathlessness even when lying down or walking short distances. Weekly hospital visits were required to drain accumulated fluid (ascites). At the time of her surgery, her diseased liver weighed an astonishing 10 kilograms. Following the successful transplant, Ms. Kong reported a vast improvement in her daily life, expressing a hopeful future that includes returning to work and traveling to reclaim the time lost to illness.
The Urgent Need for Donors
While these surgical successes inspire hope, they also bring into sharp focus the severe disparity between the number of patients awaiting transplants and the availability of donated organs. Coinciding with Organ Donation Day, recent figures reveal a stark reality: over 2,500 patients in Hong Kong are currently awaiting transplants. Yet, in each of the past three years, only about 100 procedures were performed annually.
Patients requiring kidney transplants constitute the largest group on the queue, with 2,563 individuals waiting. However, only approximately 50 kidney transplants are performed each year.
The current system relies on stringent protocols. Once a patient is declared brain dead, Hospital Authority coordinators verify registration with the Department of Health’s Central Organ Donation Register. Crucially, written consent from family members is mandatory before teams proceed with retrieval and transplantation.
Addressing Cultural Barriers and Advocating for Change
Experts suggest that cultural and social factors continue to suppress donation rates. Professor Albert Chan, Director of the Liver Transplant Centre at Queen Mary Hospital, points out that even when individuals wish to donate, the lack of prior family discussion or formal registration often prevents the donation from proceeding.
Professor Chan strongly urged the public to sign the central register and, perhaps more importantly, to communicate their wishes clearly to their loved ones. This proactive communication is essential to ensure a donor’s wishes are honored when the time comes.
To address the persistent gap between supply and demand, Director of Health Dr. Lam Kin-man has suggested re-opening community discussions about adopting an “opt-out,” or presumed-consent, model for organ donation. Under this system, individuals are presumed to consent unless they have explicitly registered their refusal. Professor Chan publicly supported such considerations, stating he backs any responsible approach that successfully increases donation numbers, anticipating a broader public dialogue on how best to meet the life-saving needs of thousands of residents.
Actionable Takeaway: Residents wishing to support organ donation should formally register their intent with the Central Organ Donation Register and ensure their family members are aware of their decision. This simple step can significantly impact a patient’s chance of survival.