HealthCare Global Enterprises Limited has invested Rs.25 crore to set up a dedicated liver transplantation unit.

The healthcare major, which has been raising funds via private equity and venture funding route, received a financial assistance of Rs.31.20 crore from Milestone Religare Investment Advisors Pvt. Ltd in early 2010.

Now with this new initiative of a liver transplantation unit, the effort is to bring down the cost of the service from the current Rs.30 lakh to Rs.13 lakh.

The four causes for liver transplant are chronic liver disease, acute liver failure, congenital disorders and liver cancer. Liver diseases are a huge burden. It is estimated that 5 per cent suffer from chronic hepatitis, 2 per cent from hepatitis C and 6 million are alcoholics. Obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome add to the burden. Annually around 20,000 people suffer from end-stage liver failure in India and require liver transplantation.

In addition to our expertise in oncology, we took on the onus to address this liver diseases to set up a liver clinic which will allow faster screening and quick access to relief with either medication or transplantation. For the new facility, we have five patients who are undergoing the various tests to get ready for the transplant, Dr BS Ajai Kumar, chairman HCG said.

The specialist team is manned by Dr Subhas Gupta, liver transplant surgeon and Dr Sanjay Govil, consultant liver transplantation which gives us a head start into the area. HCG is working with Zonal Coordination Committee of Karnataka for Transplantation to approach the government to help increase the process and to fulfill norms of The Human Organ Transplant Act 1994.

The process of transplantation accreditation ensures that we are on the track for the implementation to have the hepato-pancreatic-biliary service for the past 18 months. The service of liver transplantation completes the wide range of services for cancer and other related liver diseases, he added.

Present need is to create an awareness for organ donation in Karnataka which accounts for a mere 30 liver transplants compared to Delhi. In Tamil Nadu the number of transplants is far higher than Karnataka. It is estimated that need for liver transplants in India is 80,000 patients and the recipient long term success is 80 per cent at 10 years and all donors are safe. From South India, patients travel to Delhi for liver transplants because its far easier to get a donor. Most of the transplants done in Delhi are on patients with advanced cirrhosis, liver cancer, acute liver failure and children with biliary artresia with failed kasai operation, stated Dr Gupta.

“Liver transplantation provides a new lease of life for patients. The anticipated life expectancy is less than 12-18 years with liver diseases this is reversed by an excellent quality of life,” said Dr Govil.