Younger patients on the NHS liver transplant waiting list are waiting nearly four times longer for surgery than those over 60, new figures reveal. The current allocation system, which uses a computer algorithm to prioritise patients most likely to die soon, has widened the gap since its introduction in 2018.
Data from NHS Blood and Transplant (NHS BT) shows that patients aged 26 to 39 now wait an average of 156 days longer than those over 60. Before the algorithm, the difference was about 40 days. The algorithm considers 21 recipient factors, including age, disease type and severity, and seven donor factors, assigning a score to determine priority.
Sarah Meredith, 31, has been on the waiting list since July 2021 after a rare complication from cystic fibrosis damaged her liver. She moved from Devon to Cambridge to be near the hospital but has not received a call. “Some days it's really quite dark,” she said, adding that she fears her family watching her die.
Liver transplant surgeon Professor Nigel Heaton said younger patients often have congenital or early-onset conditions, not lifestyle-related ones. “They're not going to die immediately, but you can see they're deteriorating,” he said, calling for a system tweak to give them equal opportunity.
NHS BT chief nurse Olive McGowan acknowledged the stress but defended the system, saying it maximises the use of donated livers and prevents deaths. About 700 people are on the UK waiting list, and 69 died last year before receiving a transplant.
