Division of Transplant & Hepatobiliary Diseases
Transplant & Hepatobiliary Diseases: Care, Research and Education
The Lahey Clinic transplant program was an early pioneer of successful liver and kidney transplants. Today, through the Roger L. Jenkins Transplant Institute, our surgical teams are world leaders in transplant medicine.
We care for all aspects of the hepatobiliary system, which includes the liver, gallbladder, bile ducts and pancreas. Offering outstanding fellowship education to trainees in the field, our board-certified physician team has extensive experience in all aspects of hepatobiliary care and surgical transplants.
More About the Division
Welcome to the Division of Transplantation and Hepatobiliary Diseases at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts. Lahey was founded by Dr. Frank Lahey in 1923 as a multidisciplinary clinical practice within the city of Boston, but grew to its current location north of the city in 1980.
Continuing in its long tradition of excellence in disease diagnostics and surgical innovation, we became a founding member of Beth Israel Lahey Heath in 2019. Our world-renowned Transplant Program is located in The Roger L. Jenkins Transplant Institute where a talented and committed team of surgeons, physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, researchers and administrators work together to provide care for transplant patients.
Our liver transplant program is the most active in New England and one of the largest in the country. This includes the largest living donor liver transplant program in New England and one of the largest in the United States. As the only program currently offering robotic living donor hepatectomy, we can now provide select patients donating portions of their liver a faster recovery with a less invasive surgical approach.
Our kidney transplant program is one of the oldest in New England, offering both deceased donor and living donor options and recently performed the first totally robotic kidney transplant in the region. Following in the long surgical tradition of Lahey pioneers, our team offers extensive surgical expertise in complex liver, biliary and pancreatic surgery. This includes robotic and laparoscopic techniques as well as more traditional open surgery. We also offer complex surgical resection for various liver and pancreatic tumors as well as advanced radiologic and endoscopic ablation technologies.
Our program includes a unique blend of hepatologists, nephrologists, surgeons, oncologists, endoscopists and interventional radiologists. We provide complete management of the entire spectrum of hepatobiliary and pancreatic disorders. We are a center committed to the respectful care of our patient family while advancing science and training our future healthcare providers.
Mohamed Akoad, MD, FACS
Kidney Transplants
The first kidney transplant performed by Lahey surgeons was in 1974, and it was a live donor transplant between siblings. It was performed by members of the Department of Urology at the New England Deaconess Hospital, which served as Lahey’s primary in-patient facility at the time.
The Urology group continued to perform living and deceased donor kidney transplants until the Lahey practice relocated to its current clinical facility in Burlington in 1978. Kidney transplants became part of the transplantation program in 2009. We have dedicated nephrologists within the division who are experienced in all aspects of medical care for transplant patients.
Liver Transplants
The liver transplant program also had its roots at the New England Deaconess Hospital, where a team led by Roger L. Jenkins, MD, performed the first successful liver transplant in New England on July 14, 1983. It continued its tradition of innovative surgery by performing the first adult-to-adult live donor liver transplant in December 1998.
In June of 1999, the entire liver transplant team — including surgeons, hepatologists, nursing and support staff — relocated to Lahey and continued a tradition of leadership in the field with these impressive accomplishments:
- In September 1999, the team performed the first combined liver donor/liver-live donor kidney transplant in the world.
- On New Year’s Day 2000, the team performed the first “domino” liver transplant in New England.
By 2008, Lahey’s live donor liver transplant hospital program was the largest in the United States.
Transplantation and Hepatobiliary Disease Care
In January 2010, transplant services at Lahey were united in a single division that contained liver and kidney transplant surgeons, hepatobiliary surgeons, transplant hepatologists and transplant nephrologists. This consolidation of transplant expertise in a single location gives our patients seamless access to the specialists needed to successfully manage their care. It also allows for easy consultations among providers.
The division’s successes continue today. We remain one of the largest U.S. centers for live donor liver transplants and have the most extensive liver transplant program in New England. We’ve performed well over 1500 liver transplants since the inception of our program.
Robotic Transplant, Liver and Pancreas Surgery
In 2017, we began our minimally invasive complex surgery program using robotic surgery. This is a comprehensive program available to selected patients who need surgery for a kidney transplant, living donor liver surgery or surgery for disorders of the liver, pancreas, bile duct or gallbladder. The goals of this program are to reduce post-operative pain and shorten the time needed for recovery.
Roger L. Jenkins Transplant Institute
In January 2019, we established the Roger L. Jenkins Transplant Institute. It’s officially named for internationally renowned Lahey physician Roger L. Jenkins, MD, a pioneer in liver, biliary and pancreas surgery. Dr. Jenkins performed the first successful liver transplant in New England in 1983. He set up the busy and successful transplant program here at Lahey.
Our transplant surgeons offer individualized attention to each patient needing liver care or organ transplant. Our transplant team is highly skilled in these and other aspects of organ donation and transplant surgery:
Our team also provides expert care through hepatology, the Liver Tumor Program, the Decompensated Cirrhosis Program, and advanced liver, pancreatic, and bile duct surgery.
Outreach Program
Our outreach program is a professional healthcare service offered through the Division of Transplantation and Hepatobiliary Diseases. It’s designed to:
- Improve patient access to our programs.
- Build strong relationships with community medical providers.
- Raise community awareness on organ transplant and living donation.
For assistance from our outreach manager or to request a talk from one of our transplant hepatologists or transplant nephrologists at a community or hospital-based meeting, please contact our outreach manager, Jennie Cataldo, by calling 781-744-2500.
Many of our transplant surgeons serve as faculty to train the next generation of providers through our specialized fellowship programs:
- Transplant Anesthesia Fellowship
- Transplant Hepatology Fellowship
- Transplant & Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary (HPB) Surgery Fellowship
Learn more about other surgical education programs offered by the Department of Surgery.
Through collaborative efforts, Lahey researchers and transplant surgeons work to improve patient outcomes. Transplant research is the path to discovering new protocols for enhanced care and improved quality of life for patients.
Learn about our ongoing clinical trials.
Referrals to our department can be faxed to: 833-461-0694.
Transfer a patient to our department by calling: 617-278-7777, option 2
