Organ network mapping a path to more fair liver transplants

On Monday, the United Network for Organ Sharing is proposing a change, redrawing the map that governs how donated livers are distributed so patients wouldn't need to leave home for better odds.

Livers are offered first to the sickest patients as determined by a ranking, a so-called MELD score, which uses laboratory tests to predict their current risk of death.

Today, some regions are able to transplant patients before they're super-sick — with MELD scores as low as 23 — while others can't provide transplants until a patient's MELD score reaches 35, meaning they're at risk of death within weeks, Hirose said.

UNOS' proposed fix is similar to how politicians redraw voting maps: divide the nation into eight new "districts" for liver transplants.

Sick patients shouldn't have to leave home to improve their odds of a transplant, said liver recipient Myles Kane.

Because a piece of a liver can regrow, patients can avoid the transplant wait if they're able to find a living donor, he noted.