Molinette Hospital saves Greek student with emergency liver transplant

A 28-year-old Greek student, Eirini, was saved by an emergency liver transplant at the Molinette Hospital in Turin, Italy. The patient, who studies in the Netherlands, suffered from Wilson disease, a rare genetic disorder causing copper accumulation in the liver.

While in Greece, Eirini experienced fulminant hepatic failure that progressed to multi-organ failure at the Hippokration General Hospital in Athens. Following an urgent request, the National Transplant Center in Rome activated an Italy-Greece cooperation protocol.

The patient was transferred via medical aircraft to Turin, arriving in critical condition—unconscious and on mechanical ventilation. Within 12 hours of arrival, she was placed on the national emergency transplant list and underwent a ten-hour surgical procedure. Medical teams utilized life-support therapies, including plasmaferesis, to manage her condition before the transplant. Following several months of recovery and managing post-operative complications, the patient has been discharged.