In a rare and technically demanding medical feat, doctors in Mumbai performed a split liver transplant that saved the lives of two patients, a 44-year-old man with end-stage liver disease and a three-year-old child suffering from severe liver failure.
The complex procedure, carried out at Gleneagles Hospital in Parel, used a single liver from a 38-year-old brain-dead donor, which was surgically divided and transplanted into two recipients. Such procedures remain uncommon in India, particularly due to the scarcity of suitable donors and the high level of surgical coordination required.
For Netaji Chavan, a resident of Sion in Mumbai, the transplant came after years of deteriorating health. Chavan had been battling decompensated cirrhosis, a severe stage of liver disease marked by complications such as abdominal fluid accumulation, jaundice and muscle wasting. He had been on the deceased donor waiting list since April 2021, with his condition worsening over time.
“I had almost lost hope after waiting for years,” Chavan said. “Living with liver disease was not just physically exhausting; it was mentally draining. There were days when I could barely get out of bed. Watching my body grow weaker while waiting for a transplant was frightening because you never know if help will come in time.”
The second recipient, three-year-old Charvik Ingle from Nerul in Navi Mumbai, was diagnosed with cryptogenic cirrhosis, a form of liver disease in which the underlying cause cannot be identified. Despite being three years old, Charvik’s physical growth had slowed dramatically due to the illness, leaving his height and weight closer to those of a toddler. He also developed abdominal swelling due to fluid accumulation.
Doctors confirmed the diagnosis through imaging tests, while extensive genetic testing failed to identify a specific cause. Charvik was placed on the deceased donor liver transplant waiting list on December 12, 2025, as transplantation was the only curative option.
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“When we learned our child had liver failure, we were shattered,” Charvik’s father said. “Every hospital visit filled us with fear. When doctors explained that a transplant was the only solution, we were scared but hopeful.”
The opportunity arose when a 38-year-old man was declared brain dead at AIMS Hospital in Dombivli, a hospital accredited for kidney transplants but not liver transplants. According to Zonal Transplant Coordination Centre (ZTCC) guidelines, the liver was therefore allocated to the city’s organ-sharing pool.
Because the donor was relatively young and had good liver function, the transplant team at Gleneagles decided to perform a split liver transplantation, a complex procedure that divides one donor liver into two usable segments.
“The donor organ was ideal for splitting, but the donor hospital did not have the specialised surgical equipment required to divide the liver,” said Dr Anurag Shrimal, director of liver transplant at Gleneagles Hospital.
To overcome this challenge, the transplant team transported advanced surgical instruments from Gleneagles to the donor hospital in Dombivli and worked in coordination with the ZTCC to carry out the procedure.
On February 9, surgeons carefully divided the liver into two sections: a larger right-sided portion for the adult recipient and a smaller left lateral segment for the child. The splitting was performed under cold preservation conditions.
Multiple surgical teams worked simultaneously across locations. While the donor surgery was carried out in Dombivli, operating theatres were prepared at Gleneagles Hospital in Mumbai for the two recipients. A fourth theatre was used for the final stage of preparing the organ before implantation. The entire effort took nearly 15 to 17 hours.
Split liver transplantation is among the most complex procedures in transplant surgery. It requires meticulous donor selection, surgical expertise and seamless coordination among transplant surgeons, anaesthesiologists and critical care teams.
The procedure also highlights the liver’s unique regenerative capacity. Once transplanted, both segments can grow and adapt within their respective recipients.
Both patients recovered well after surgery and were discharged in stable condition, doctors said.
Experts say the case also highlights a persistent challenge in India, that of the shortage of suitable organs.
“There is a severe shortage of paediatric donors. As a result, children waiting for liver transplantation often do not receive size-matched organs in time,” said Dr S.K. Mathur, president of the Zonal Transplant Coordination Centre.
In many Western countries, he noted, splitting livers from young deceased donors into two segments, one for an adult and another for a child, is increasingly used to maximise the impact of organ donation.
“This technique is still rarely used in India,” Mathur said. “But through careful coordination and the guidelines developed by the ZTCC liver technical committee, we hope to expand its use so that one donor organ can save multiple lives.”
“This milestone reflects what is possible when compassion and advanced medical care come together,” said Dr Bipin Chevale, CEO of Gleneagles Hospital Mumbai. “The donor family’s selfless decision has given two patients a renewed chance at life.”
For two families in Mumbai, that decision has meant a second chance for two individuals who can now live with hope.