Where loss turns living seeds
The story of a young British girl who died in an accident during a trip to Vietnam in early April 2026 has moved many people not only because of the great loss but also because of the noble decision of her family to donate organs. From the most painful moment, they chose to give life so that three other patients would have the opportunity to be revived.
At Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, where the girl was treated after a serious accident, doctors and nurses witnessed a special separation. In the recovery room, under the cold white light, her face still had the youthfulness of her 19th birthday. The mother from London (UK) flew to Hanoi as soon as she received the bad news. She entered the hospital room, quietly put her hand on her child's face, kissed her child one last time. Then the father hugged his daughter and burst into tears. In the extreme pain of parents when having to accept letting go of their biological child, they made a very courageous decision: Donate their child's organs to save other patients in Vietnam.
It is not simply a medical procedure agreement. It is a choice made in the most harsh circumstances, when the father and mother's hearts are broken by loss. Amidst the pain, they still open their hearts to life, turning the departure of their daughter into a chance to live for strangers. That decision has made a special meaning for this sad story.
The 19-year-old girl came to Vietnam after finishing high school, carrying many dreams and plans to go to university. During her journey to explore Ha Giang, she unfortunately had an accident and passed away; The professional council determined brain death on April 2.
In extreme pain, her parents decided to donate organs so that their child could continue to be present in a different way. From that gesture, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital transplanted a liver to a 53-year-old patient with end-stage liver failure, and at the same time transplanted two kidneys to a 35-year-old male patient and a 41-year-old female patient.
The meeting between the girl's family and an organ transplant patient moved many people. Although they did not have the same language or knew each other before, they still understood each other through their eyes and choked hugs. The rescued man only knew how to bow his head to thank the girl's parents.
This is not only a sad story about the accident of a 19-year-old girl, but also a story about compassion, kindness and the will to overcome grief to give hope to others. Although she passed away at a very young age, she has done the most beautiful thing: Leaving life to life.
Vietnamese organ transplantation is rewriting the limit
The final journey of the British girl in Vietnam, along with the decision to leave a part of her body to save people, is one of the special and touching organ donation stories in Vietnam.
After more than 30 years of development, organ transplantation in Vietnam is making strong progress in both expertise and coordination capacity. Many difficult techniques have been successfully deployed, opening up more life opportunities for thousands of end-stage organ failure patients.
From once considered an "out-of-reach" field, Vietnamese organ transplantation is making strong progress, continuously conquering many difficult techniques. Along with that, the number of organ donors after brain death has increased significantly, opening up more life opportunities for hundreds of end-stage organ failure patients.
2025 is considered a breakthrough milestone for the organ donation and transplantation industry. The whole country recorded 66 cases of brain death donating tissues and organs, the highest ever. Viet Duc Friendship Hospital alone has 25 organ donations, much higher than the average of previous years. Many large hospitals such as Central Military Hospital 108, Cho Ray, and Central Lung Hospital have also continuously successfully performed multi-organ transplants.
At the end of November 2025, Central Military Hospital 108 successfully performed a liver transplant with blood group incompatibility for a 20-year-old female patient in Hanoi, with the liver donor being the patient's father. This is the first adult blood group incompatibility liver transplant at the hospital.
Previously, ABO blood type incompatibility human organ transplantation technique in Vietnam was newly deployed on kidney transplant patients and some cases of liver transplantation in children. Therefore, this success is considered a new milestone in the treatment of difficult cases in adults.
A prominent highlight is the first successful simultaneous heart-lung transplant at Viet Duc Friendship Hospital. This is a very complex technique, requiring high professional qualifications, the coordination of many teams and modern resuscitation systems. This success opens up more hope for end-stage heart-lung patients. The transplant was performed at Viet Duc Friendship Hospital in August 2025.
The patient is Mr. Tran Nhu Q (38 years old), suffering from end-stage heart and lung disease. This is one of the most complex multi-organ transplants today, lasting many hours, requiring the surgical team to use the extracorporeal circulatory system (ECMO) to temporarily replace the heart and lung function for the patient.
A noteworthy point is that doctors at Viet Duc Friendship Hospital have proactively improved the transplant technique. In which, the team cut off a part of the lung to suit the recipient's chest size, and at the same time reattached the root bronchium to ensure adequate blood supply and improve post-transplant survival.
The success of the heart-lung transplant not only marks an important step forward in Vietnamese medicine but also opens up more life opportunities for patients with severe heart-lung failure.
To achieve today's progress, Vietnam's organ transplant industry has gone through a long journey. From the first kidney transplant in 1992, to the heart transplant from a brain-dead person in 2010, then limb transplant, bowel transplant, Vietnam has gradually mastered difficult techniques. To date, the whole country has performed about 10,000 organ transplants, an average of more than 1,000 cases per year, the highest in Southeast Asia.
Not only in terms of technical advances, but the cost of organ transplantation in Vietnam is also much lower than in many countries, helping more patients have the opportunity to be treated domestically. However, behind the miraculous trans-Vietnam transplants, the organ transplant industry still faces two major problems: Lack of donor organ sources and legal corridors that have not kept up with reality.
Dr. Ha Anh Duc - Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management (Ministry of Health) - said: In 2025, Vietnam recorded a record of 66 organ donations from brain-dead people, but more than 80% of transplants currently still rely on living donors. Organ donations from brain-dead people account for only about 20%, lower than many countries in the region, causing many hospitals, even with sufficient techniques, to still lack organ sources, while thousands of patients with end-stage organ failure are still waiting to be saved.
The current difficulties come not only from social awareness but also from legal obstacles such as not allowing organ donation after heart death, not having clear regulations on organ donation in children and lacking a stable financial mechanism. At the same time, the network of hospitals participating in detecting, consulting and connecting organ donation is still very limited, with only 109 units participating in more than 1,700 hospitals nationwide.
It is necessary to soon amend the law, expand the organ donation mechanism, especially post-card death donation, complete regulations on children's organ donation, and at the same time make tissue and organ donation counseling a regular activity in hospitals. Health insurance also needs to participate in paying to promote sustainable organ transplantation development. This is not only a medical technical issue but also a measure of compassion and community responsibility" - Dr. Ha Anh Duc wished.
Besides the achievements already made, Vietnam's organ transplantation industry is continuing to aim for new destinations.
