Guatemala Performs First Liver Transplant

EFE December 14, 2007

GUATEMALA CITY – The first liver transplant in Guatemala was performed on a 2-year-old girl by a group of Mexican and Guatemalan doctors, medical officials said Saturday.

The minor, identified as Katherine Roxana Milian, received a portion of her mother’s liver after her own was removed because of cancer.

A total of eight doctors from Mexico’s Monterrey Hospital and nine Guatemalan physicians participated in the transplant, which lasted about 12 hours.

One of the doctors taking part in the procedure told local reporters that the minor is stable and that her recovery from the delicate surgery has begun. Like her daughter, the mother was also in stable condition after her operation, Dr. Dionisio Palacios said.

The transplant was possible due to the efforts of Guatemalan doctor Sergio Acajabon, who made contact with the Mexican specialists. He said this is the first time a liver transplant has been performed in Guatemala and that now there is hope the girl will survive.