OrganOx’s metra, a pioneering liver transplant system, received support from The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). The institute described the metra as ‘an exciting development in increasing the number of livers which can be safely used for transplantation’. The BBC covered this latest update and one of the early studies on ‘Surgeons: At the Edge of Life’.
In 2009 Team worked with OrganOx to develop the metra system. It is a world-first device that allows donor livers to be stored for up to 24h in a controlled environment, preventing transplants from deteriorating. The system can also give surgeons real-time feedback on the transplant’s viability, allowing for donor livers thought to be unsuitable, to be used on patients, increasing donor liver availability.
NICE approved the system for use on the NHS and issued final guidance recommending the new transplant system. It is also being trialled in other countries including the USA, Europe and India.