Yesterday, the 108 Military Central Hospital announced that its medical team had successfully performed multiple organ transplants from a brain-dead donor, saving the lives of six critically ill patients, with two more awaiting transplantation.
The donor was a 55-year-old male soldier who suffered an acute brainstem stroke.
Upon receiving confirmation of brain death and consent for organ donation on November 9, the hospital conducted an emergency interdisciplinary consultation to plan a complex multi-organ retrieval and transplant procedure involving the heart, liver, kidneys, lungs, and corneas.
The large-scale surgeries included a heart transplant for a patient with end-stage heart failure, a split-liver transplant for two patients, kidney transplants for two patients with chronic kidney failure, lung retrieval for transfer to the National Lung Hospital, and cornea retrieval for preservation and future transplantation. Among these, the intra-abdominal split-liver technique was the most technically demanding.
According to Assoc. Prof. Vu Van Quang, Deputy Head of the Department of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery at 108 Hospital, the facility has been the first in Vietnam to master this technique since April 2024. Since then, seven patients, including adults and children, have been saved from a single donated liver. As of November 10, all liver and kidney recipients were recovering well with significantly improved organ function, and the heart recipient was showing positive progress under close monitoring.
On the same day, Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City announced that it had successfully performed its first-ever lung transplant from a brain-dead donor, marking the first lung transplant in Southern Vietnam.
According to Dr. Pham Thanh Viet, Deputy Director in charge of operations at Cho Ray Hospital, from November 7 to 9, the hospital received two cases of brain-dead organ donations. The first donor, a 49-year-old man with irreversible brain injury, provided organs after his family consented to donation. Overnight, surgical teams carried out one heart transplant, one lung transplant, and two kidney transplants. Additionally, two corneas were sent to Hue Central Hospital.
This was the first time Cho Ray Hospital had performed a lung transplant, with support from two Korean experts and specialists from the 108 Hospital. The second donor, who was declared brain-dead at Ba Ria General Hospital, had his organs retrieved on November 9. Teams from Cho Ray Hospital immediately traveled to receive the organs. The heart and kidneys were transplanted at Cho Ray Hospital, the lungs were transferred to the National Lung Hospital in Hanoi, and the split liver was transplanted into patients at Hue Central Hospital and the University Medical Center in Ho Chi Minh City.
According to Dr. Pham Thanh Viet, thanks to the generous act of two brain-dead donors and their families, 12 patients have been given a new lease on life.
