Episode 05: The Liver Transplant Process with Dr. Shimul Shah

During this episode of This Thing Called Life podcast, host Andi Johnson speaks with Dr. Shimul Shah, the head of the Liver Transplant Program at UC Health. Dr. Shah and his team are utilizing ever-evolving medical technologies to help all those facing the liver-transplant process. He knows that it is vitally important to try to understand what the patient is going through so that they can best be served with their health problems.

Episode Highlights: 

• Dr. Shah runs one of the largest liver transplant programs in the country to help as many people as possible.
• In his 9th year with UC Health, Dr. Shah and his team have done over 750 liver transplants.
• COVID has presented some challenges in the world of liver transplantations because of its immunosuppressed patients.
• There are a number of things that must be considered with the introduction of a global pandemic before conducting transplants.
• Though they didn’t understand what was happening around the world, Dr. Shah’s team went ahead with multiple transplants.
• Many healthcare professionals had to come together when making protocols for transplantations during COVID.
• There has been a lot of success with telehealth and that proved useful for the Liver Transplant Team.
• After protocols were put in place, liver transplants were resumed at the same rate as before.
• Programs all over the country were forced to shut their doors for a small period of time while they figured out how to get ahead of COVID.
• There are more donors in the Midwest and South than there are on the East Coast and West Coast.
• A national policy of “sickest first” has allowed organs to be shared throughout a wider geographical region.
• Clinical trials are underway for pumps that pump the livers continuously during travel.
• The pump presents an opportunity to repair the damage that has been done to organs before transplants are conducted.
• Because of technology, more organs are being used today that would have never been used 5-10 years ago.
• Dr. Shah uses complete transparency when he gives his patients past results of treatment options.
• Patients can donate their livers at much older ages because liver cells constantly repair themselves.
• Dr. Shah originally wanted to be a liver and pancreas cancer expert, but a fellowship in liver transplant shifted his path if only slightly.
• Patients know when the care that a doctor shows is authentic and that they are all in on the process.
• It’s important to talk to patients as people and try to understand what they are going through.
• Dr. Shah helped lead the Living Liver Donor Program that launched earlier this year.
• New patients find out how sick they actually are and what all their options are before moving forward.
• Dr. Shah and his team do everything they can to help people get better without a transplant.
• During his free time, Dr. Shah enjoys playing tennis, basketball, and taking afternoon naps.
• COVID has made Dr. Shah’s family’s favorite activities, eating out and traveling, a little tricky.

3 Key Points:

1. People with compromised immune systems are more susceptible to COVID-19, thus bringing a learning curve to those in the liver transplant field.
2. Transplant systems all over the country were forced to shut down their programs when COVID first hit, but have since been able to resume transplants after implementing protocols.
3. Patients with an extensive medical history have benefited greatly from advancements in technology due to the larger amount of organs that are now available.

Resources Mentioned:

• LifeCenter (website) (Facebook) (Instagram) (YouTube) (Twitter)
• Andi Johnson (website) (LinkedIn)
• Dr. Shimul Shah (website)
• UC Health | Liver Transplant Program
• In Shock - (Book)
• Dewey’s Pizza