Organ transplant miracles in 2024
Since the first kidney transplant in 1992, Vietnam has achieved 9,516 organ transplants by the end of 2024, performed at 27 hospitals and centers nationwide. In the past 3 years, there have been an average of about 1,000 successful organ transplants each year, the highest in Southeast Asia.
According to Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan, currently, the rate of organ transplants from living donors accounts for 94%, while the number of people registering to donate organs from brain-dead people is still very limited. However, in 2024, there was an important step forward when 41 families agreed to donate organs of their loved ones after brain death - a new record of compassion.
“The year 2024 marks a memorable milestone for the organ transplant industry, with achievements honored as typical events of Vietnamese medicine. We have succeeded in the first simultaneous heart-liver transplant and trachea transplant from a brain-dead donor - a rare technique even in the world,” Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan shared.
Also this year, Vietnam successfully performed three lung transplants, bringing the total to 12 since 2017.
On October 9, 2024, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital announced the first simultaneous heart-liver transplant in Vietnam from an organ donated by a brain-dead donor. The patient was Mr. D.V.H, 41 years old, suffering from end-stage heart failure and severe liver failure.
On the night of September 30, 2024, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital received information from Nghe An General Friendship Hospital about a patient with severe traumatic brain injury, whose family agreed to donate organs. After consultation, the team of doctors decided to perform a simultaneous heart-liver transplant for Mr. D.V.H.
The organ retrieval and transportation process took 3 hours and 30 minutes and the transplant lasted 36 hours. After the surgery, the patient's liver and heart functions gradually recovered. By October 9, Mr. D.V.H was able to talk, eat and perform basic functions almost normally.
The success of this transplant marks a major step forward in the history of Vietnamese medicine, affirming Vietnam's professional capacity in surgery and anesthesia and resuscitation on par with developed countries.
Vietnam's organ transplant technique "falls behind and is ahead"
In 2024, the Central Lung Hospital successfully performed 3 lung transplants, notably the one on November 28, 2024 for Mr. Dang Thai Manh, 28 years old. Previously, Mr. Manh, a maxillofacial surgeon, had a serious lung disease, causing his lung function to decrease to 20% and he had to live on oxygen for 6 months. The surgery lasted 10 hours, using 27 liters of blood. After more than 1 month, Mr. Manh has recovered, can climb three flights of stairs and hopes to return to work soon.
Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan said that the Vietnamese health sector has now mastered the most advanced organ transplant techniques, with high survival rates and reasonable costs. The motto of "going later and coming first" is demonstrated through the implementation of these techniques, bringing new hope to thousands of patients, especially those in difficult circumstances. The achievements in 2024 affirm the position of the Vietnamese organ transplant industry on the regional and world medical map. This is not only the pride of the health sector but also the motivation to continue conquering new heights in the future. In 2025, the organ transplant industry will continue its journey of saving patients' lives, affirming humanistic values and making constant efforts for human health.
