Organ TransplantGastroenterology

Liver Transplant Program

(415) 353-1888

Liver transplant offers patients with end-stage liver disease a second chance at life. The UCSF Liver Transplant Program has made this chance possible for nearly 4,000 patients since its founding in 1998.

Our program, designated a center of excellence by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is known for outstanding outcomes and for helping pioneer techniques to make transplantation safer and more successful. We perform transplants using both deceased and living donors, and are able to perform complex transplants on patients with complicating health conditions, such as portal vein thrombosis. Our team also created new criteria for transplanting liver cancer patients, which are now used in transplant centers across the world and have allowed more patients to become eligible for transplant.

Each patient's treatment team includes surgeons, hepatologists, nurses, physician assistants, pharmacists, dietitians and social workers. Liver transplant pathologists and interventional radiologists also help accurately diagnose and manage liver disease and liver cancer progression before transplant. Our dedicated transplant unit is staffed by nurses and other providers who specialize in caring for liver transplant patients.

Download our new patient handbook (PDF).

Our outcomes

UCSF's adult liver transplant patients have a one-year survival rate that consistently exceeds the national average, according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR). In SRTR's most recent reporting period, our liver transplant recipients had a survival rate of 93.48 percent one year after transplant, compared with a national average of 92.82 percent, and an expected survival rate – meaning the predicted survival rate based on variables indicating how sick or healthy our recipients are – of 92.47 percent.

More outcomes data is available from SRTR and from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network.

Doctor referral required

Patient education videos

Watch the webinar

Liver Transplant: What to Expect

Watch the webinar

Living Donor Champion Program with Finesse Louie, Transplant Coordinator

Non-Standard and Expanded Criteria Donors for Liver Transplant

UCSF Liver Transplant Support Group

For UCSF patients living with a transplanted liver or preparing for the procedure

  • Meet other people who have undergone liver transplantation or are awaiting transplant.
  • Share your experiences and hear what others have to say.
  • Get support, give support.

Location: Meetings are currently held online.
Meetings: First and third Thursday of the month, 1 - 2 p.m.
Contact: Email [email protected] for more information and to receive a meeting invitation.

COVID-19 and transplant patients

UCSF strongly encourages patients awaiting liver transplants to get vaccinated. We also recommend that patients awaiting organ transplants follow the guidelines for immunocompromised patients from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Liver donation

Becoming a living donor

The gift of an organ offers someone another chance at life. Find out more about the surgery, who is eligible and how to take the first step.

Learn more

Our locations

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    Patient education resources

    After Living Liver Donor Surgery

    See what to expect following the surgery, from how long you'll be in the hospital to pain management, when you can eat and drink again, and whether you'll have a scar.

    FAQ: Living Liver Donor

    Get answers to important questions such as how you qualify to be a donor, what the first and next steps are in the process, why your blood type is important, and confidentiality.

    Evaluation to be a Living Liver Donor

    Find out what the evaluation process is like, whether it's covered by insurance, when you'll know if you're eligible to be a liver donor, and more.

    FAQ: Getting a Liver Transplant

    Find commonly asked questions regarding getting a liver transplant including, who gets priority, whether there's a way to expedite the process, and more.

    Liver Transplant Glossary

    Use this Liver Transplant Glossary to help you understand some of the esoteric language and terms including, Angiogram, Echocardiogram, Sclerotherapy, and more.

    Living Donor Liver Transplant: The Facts

    In the U.S., there are over 17,000 patients on the liver waiting list, but only enough donated livers to perform about 5,000 transplants per year. Learn more.

    Programs

    Living Donor Liver Transplant Program

    Patients needing a liver transplant may have the option to receive a portion of the liver of a living friend or relative. UCSF's program supports these patients and their donors through the process of evaluation, transplantation and recovery.

    Treatments we specialize in

    Our team

    Decorative Caduceus

    US National OCS Liver Perfusion (OLP) Registry

    Recipients' patient and graft survival rates will be the primary clinical outcomes measures for all OCS Liver transplanted recipients compared to recipients receiving liver transplants using non-OCS preservation methods (cold stat...

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Kidney Transplantation From Donors With HIV: Impact on Rejection and Long-Term Outcomes (Expand...

    Proportion of participants who die or have graft rejection

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Expanding Liver Transplant Immunosuppression Minimization Via Everolimus

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Functional Assessment in Liver Transplantation

    Grip strength: Performance-based. Measured in kilograms. This was measured in each subject's dominant hand using a hand dynamometer (Jamar Hydraulic hand dynamometer). We averaged three trials. Chair stands: Performance-based. Me...

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    ALTA TIPS: A 5-year Longitudinal Observational Study of Patients Undergoing TIPS Placement

    Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt (TIPS) was first developed as a salvage tool for life threatening variceal bleeding or for the management of severe ascites refractory to medical therapy. Over the past decade there ha...

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Study of Oral TLR8 Agonist Selgantolimod on HBsAg in Participants With Both Chronic Hepatitis B...

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Diagnostic and Therapeutic Applications of Microarrays in Liver Transplantation

    Based on the reference set, create molecular classifier that predicts antibody mediated and T cell mediated rejection for next 200 biopsies

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Pancreatic Islets and Parathyroid Gland Co-transplantation for Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes

    Safety: Since this study is a pilot non-randomized safety and efficacy trial with patient enrollment limited by budgetary constraints, no direct statistical significance tests can be performed.

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy and Lifestyle Modification for the Treatment of Non-Alcoholic Steat...

    The scale used is NAS - this is the NAFLD (Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease) Activity Score. The NAS was developed to provide a numerical score for patients who most likely have NASH. Accordingly, NAS is the sum of the separate s...

    Recruiting

    Decorative Caduceus

    Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in HIV Database

    Vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE) measures the speed of a mechanically generated shear wave across the liver to derive a liver stiffness measurement (LSM), which corresponds to the liver fibrosis stage. LSM is mea...

    Recruiting

    Awards & recognition

    • U S News and World Report badge recognizing UCSF as part of its 2024-2025 Honor Roll

      Among the top hospitals in the nation

    • One of the nation's best for gastroenterology & GI surgery

    • Seal_of_the_United_States_Department_of_Health_and_Human_Services-2x

      Designated center of excellence

    • "Elite" rating (highest) among designated programs of excellence

    • n1-2x

      in the West for number of living donor liver transplants performed

    • n2-2x

      in the U.S. for number of liver transplants performed

    Support services

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    Patient Resource

    Case Management & Social Work

    Connect with a team that can help you find resources, solve problems and advocate for you during treatment at UCSF.

    Patient Resource

    Kôz Hospitality House

    Kôz Hospitality House provides comfortable, reasonably priced accommodations near our Parnassus campus for UCSF patients during their treatment.

    Class

    Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Class

    This eight-week class teaches mindfulness practices that can reduce stress and improve your overall health, such as meditation and body awareness.

    Support Group

    Organ Transplant Support Groups

    Our heart, lung and liver transplant groups offer peer-based support for pre- and post -transplant patients, LVAD patients, families and caregivers.

    Patient Resource

    Patient Relations

    We welcome feedback about your experience at UCSF Health. Find out how to contact us with comments, questions or concerns.

    Patient Resource

    Spiritual Care Services

    Chaplains representing many faiths are available around the clock to provide support, comfort and counsel to patients, families and caregivers.

    Preparing for your appointment

    What to Bring

    • Photo I.D.
    • Health insurance card
    • Insurance authorization, if required
    • Doctor's referral, if required
    • Recent test results related to your condition
    • List of your medications, including dosages, plus any you're allergic to
    • List of questions you may have
    • Device or paper for taking notes

    International Services

    If you live outside the United States and are coming to UCSF for medical treatment, our patient liaisons can help coordinate all aspects of your visit.

    Learn more

    Interpreting Services

    UCSF offers interpreters in various languages, including American Sign Language (ASL), as well as services for deaf, hard-of-hearing and visually impaired patients.

    Learn more

    Hospital Stays

    Make your hospital stay as smooth and comfortable as possible by finding out how to prepare and what to expect.

    Learn more

    Your Doctor Visit

    See our top 10 tips for making your UCSF doctor’s appointment as stress-free and productive as possible.

    Learn more

    Guides and forms

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    Our research initiatives

    • UCSF-Division-of-Transplant-Surgery-Research-2x

      UCSF Division of Transplant Surgery Research

      The UCSF Division of Transplant Surgery conducts research aimed at expanding medication options, refining surgical techniques and improving methods of preventing transplant rejection.

      Learn more

    Sign up to be an organ donor

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