Intermountain Health announces great strides in number of organ transplants
Jan 13, 2025, 1:57 PM | Updated: 2:42 pm
Statistics about Intermountain Health’s liver transplants are shown while Dr. Richard Gilroy, transplant hepatologist and Intermountain Health's liver transplant medical director, speaks to media during a press conference announcing the successful transplanting of 489 organs in 2024 by Intermountain Health, at the Intermountain Kem C. Gardner Transformation Center in Murray on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025. (Brice Tucker, Deseret News)
(Brice Tucker, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — There was a significant increase in organ transplants performed at Intermountain Health in 2024. This increase continues a six-year trend at Intermountain.
The increase occurred in both live and deceased organ donations from across the United States.
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According to Dr. Richard Gilroy, Intermountain’s liver transplant medical director, one of the largest increases was in living kidney and liver donations.
“That allows the recipient to grow a full liver,” Gilroy said, “and that donor’s liver will grow back to be exactly the same size as it was.” Gilroy specializes in liver transplants.
The Intermountain Health Adult Transplant program conducted 489 organ transplants in 2024. Six years ago, that number was 190.
The increase is due in part to Intermountain’s short wait times. In a press release, Intermountain said their kidney transplant program “has one of the shortest wait times in the nation.” The average wait is 109 days from the time the request is listed to the transplant date.
Intermountain said that patients in other U.S. transplant programs can wait from three to five years. For those needing a liver transplant, Intermountain’s median wait time is 22 days.
Cutting-edge technology
The use of new technology is another reason that Intermountain has greatly increased its number of organ transplants. In a press release, Intermountain said it was the “first in Utah last year to use a new state-of-the-art organ-saving device.”
This device impacts the viability of an organ that has been donated, keeping it in “a near-physiological state outside the body that enhances successful transplantation.”
The agency’s liver transplant program has benefitted significantly from the new tech. Intermountain representatives said the new methods contributed to a 385% growth in liver transplants between 2018 and 2024.
The good samaritans
When a person donates an organ or portion of an organ, it’s called a non-directed donation. Gilroy said he especially appreciates these good samaritans.
“The one I love the most, hearing about and participating in, are the good samaritans. Where individuals in the community, with no connection to the individual who needs their life saved, stands up and offers a piece of their liver to save someone else.”
Gilroy encourages people to tell their families if they intend to be organ donors. He credits greater understanding by the public for some of Intermountain’s success.
The need for organ donation is great. According to the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, more than 103,000 people are on a waiting list.
