{"id":2988,"date":"2026-09-15T13:38:33","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T13:38:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/?p=2988"},"modified":"2026-10-10T08:59:20","modified_gmt":"2026-10-10T08:59:20","slug":"liver-transplant-in-turkey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/przerobka-watroby-w-turcji\/","title":{"rendered":"Liver Transplant in Turkey: The Facts and What to Check"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2988\" class=\"elementor elementor-2988\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-92f6e90 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"92f6e90\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1979948 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"1979948\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div id=\"bh\">\n\n<section class=\"hero\">\n  <div class=\"in\">\n    <p class=\"eyebrow\">Liver transplantation \u00b7 Turkey<\/p>\n    <h1>Why do so many patients travel to Turkey for a liver transplant?<\/h1>\n    <p class=\"lead\">Cost matters to every family, and it is part of the answer. But the reason\n       that stands up to scrutiny is one specific kind of experience \u2014 and a legal system built\n       around protecting the donor. Here are the published numbers, and what you should check\n       before choosing anywhere.<\/p>\n    <p class=\"meta\">Based on published registry data, peer-reviewed studies and Turkish\n       legislation<\/p>\n  <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<section class=\"wrap\">\n\n  <div class=\"ozet\">\n    <h2>The short answer<\/h2>\n    <ul>\n      <li>Most liver transplants in Turkey come from <b>living donors<\/b> \u2014 1,776 in 2019\n          alone, 80% of all liver transplants that year.<\/li>\n      <li>With a living donor, you <b>do not wait<\/b> for a deceased donor liver that may never\n          come.<\/li>\n      <li>Turkish law <b>bans the sale of organs<\/b> and allows living donation only from a\n          spouse or close relatives \u2014 or with ethics committee approval.<\/li>\n      <li>Before choosing, check the hospital's <b>official authorisation<\/b>, ask how many\n          living donor transplants the team performs, and ask about\n          <b>complication insurance<\/b>.<\/li>\n    <\/ul>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <h2>The reason is living donation<\/h2>\n\n  <p>In many countries, a patient needing a new liver joins a waiting list and hopes that a\n     deceased donor liver becomes available in time. In Turkey, deceased organ donation has\n     remained low. Transplant teams responded by building their programmes around\n     <b>living donors<\/b> \u2014 usually a family member who gives part of their liver, which then\n     regrows.<\/p>\n\n  <p>The result is experience at a scale few countries have:<\/p>\n\n  <div class=\"tblwrap\">\n    <table>\n      <thead>\n        <tr><th>What was measured<\/th><th>Figure<\/th><th>Source<\/th><\/tr>\n      <\/thead>\n      <tbody>\n        <tr><td>Liver transplants in Turkey, 2002\u20132014<\/td><td><b>7,152<\/b> \u2014 67.8% from living donors<\/td><td>Akbulut &amp; Yilmaz, 2015<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td>Liver transplant centres in Turkey (2014)<\/td><td><b>45<\/b><\/td><td>Akbulut &amp; Yilmaz, 2015<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td>Living donor liver transplants in Turkey, 2019<\/td><td><b>1,776<\/b> \u2014 80.3% of all liver transplants<\/td><td>G\u00f6k\u00e7e &amp; Alkan, 2023<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td>One Turkish centre, 2002\u20132025<\/td><td><b>4,011<\/b> transplants \u2014 86.8% living donor, 244 paired exchanges<\/td><td>Yavuz Baskiran &amp; Yilmaz, 2026<\/td><\/tr>\n      <\/tbody>\n    <\/table>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <p>A 2023 study using international registry and Ministry of Health data reported that\n     in 2019, Turkey performed <b>more living donor liver transplants than any other\n     country<\/b>.<\/p>\n\n  <p>For a patient who has a willing and suitable family donor, a centre with deep living\n     donor experience changes the equation: the transplant can be <b>planned<\/b>, rather than\n     waited for.<\/p>\n\n  <h2>Why the team's experience matters \u2014 especially for the donor<\/h2>\n\n  <p>Giving part of a liver is major surgery for a healthy person. A worldwide survey of\n     more than 11,000 living liver donors found a donor death rate of <b>0.2%<\/b> \u2014 and that\n     rate was similar regardless of how experienced the programme was.<\/p>\n\n  <p>But experience made a difference elsewhere. Potentially life-threatening\n     <b>\"near-miss\" events<\/b> and operations that had to be <b>stopped part-way<\/b> were\n     more likely in programmes that had performed <b>50 or fewer<\/b> living donor\n     transplants. That is a question worth asking any centre, in any country.<\/p>\n\n  <h2>How Turkish law protects donors<\/h2>\n\n  <p>Where living donation is common, the protection of the donor has to be strict. In\n     Turkey it is written into law.<\/p>\n\n  <ul>\n    <li><b>Selling an organ is illegal.<\/b> Organs may not be taken or sold for money or any\n        other benefit (Law No. 2238, Article 3).<\/li>\n    <li><b>The donor must be an adult<\/b> able to make their own decision (Article 5), and\n        consent must be given in writing, before witnesses, and confirmed by a doctor\n        (Article 6).<\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n  <h3>Who can be your donor<\/h3>\n\n  <div class=\"tblwrap\">\n    <table>\n      <thead>\n        <tr><th>Donor<\/th><th>Rule<\/th><\/tr>\n      <\/thead>\n      <tbody>\n        <tr><td><b>Your spouse<\/b><\/td><td>Married for at least 2 years \u2014 unless the illness was diagnosed after the marriage<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td><b>Blood relatives<\/b> up to the fourth degree<\/td><td>Parents, children, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, first cousins<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td><b>Relatives by marriage<\/b> up to the fourth degree<\/td><td>Allowed<\/td><\/tr>\n        <tr><td><b>Anyone else<\/b><\/td><td>Only with approval from a provincial <b>ethics committee<\/b><\/td><\/tr>\n      <\/tbody>\n    <\/table>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <p>For a donor who is not a close relative, the ethics committee file must show\n     <b>where the relationship comes from<\/b> \u2014 with photographs, letters or official\n     documents \u2014 along with statements of <b>income<\/b> and whether the donor is <b>in\n     debt<\/b>. The committee is looking for exactly the warning signs of a paid donor.<\/p>\n\n  <div class=\"soru\">\n    <h3>What if my relative's liver is not a match?<\/h3>\n\n    <p>Turkey runs <b>paired exchange<\/b>: two families whose donors do not match their own\n       patient swap donors. Matching is done only through the Ministry of Health's national\n       software system \u2014 matching outside it is prohibited \u2014 and each donor must still be a\n       spouse or relative of their own patient.<\/p>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"box\">\n    <span class=\"etiket\">Coming from abroad: plan for a living donor<\/span>\n    <p>In practice, patients travelling to Turkey receive a transplant from a\n      <b>living donor<\/b> who comes with them. If you do not have a potential donor in your\n      family, tell us before anything else \u2014 it changes what is possible.<\/p>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <h2>What to check before you choose a centre<\/h2>\n\n  <p>The numbers above describe a country. They say nothing about the particular hospital\n     you are considering. Check these yourself:<\/p>\n\n  <ol>\n    <li><b>Official authorisation.<\/b> Hospitals treating international patients must hold\n        an international health tourism authorisation certificate from the Turkish Ministry\n        of Health. The Ministry publishes the list of authorised hospitals.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Living donor volume.<\/b> Ask how many living donor liver transplants the team\n        performs each year, and what its donor complication rate is.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Results for your condition.<\/b> Ask for outcomes in patients like you \u2014 not a\n        single headline success rate.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Complication insurance.<\/b> Ask what happens \u2014 and who pays \u2014 if a complication\n        needs extra treatment or a longer stay. Complication insurance is arranged by the\n        patient; if you have a policy, check exactly what it covers.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Follow-up at home.<\/b> Ask who will look after you once you return to your own\n        country, and how results will be shared with the transplant team.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Anyone offering a donor for money is breaking the law.<\/b> Walk away.<\/li>\n    <li><b>If you use a medical travel company, check its authorisation too.<\/b> Companies\n        arranging treatment for international patients in Turkey must hold an international\n        health tourism facilitator authorisation. BookingHospital holds this authorisation \u2014\n        certificate number <b>AK-0496<\/b> \u2014 registered with <b>USHA\u015e<\/b> (the Ministry of\n        Health's international health services company) and a member of <b>T\u00dcRSAB<\/b> (the\n        Association of Turkish Travel Agencies). You can check it yourself on the official\n        <b>HealthT\u00fcrkiye<\/b> platform, where it is listed under its registered name,\n        <b>Moc Health Sa\u011fl\u0131k Turizm (Bookinhospital.com Dan\u0131\u015fmanl\u0131k ve Tic. Ltd. \u015eti.)<\/b>.<\/li>\n  <\/ol>\n\n  <h2>What BookingHospital does<\/h2>\n\n  <p>BookingHospital is not a hospital. It is an authorised facilitator that works between you\n     and the transplant team, from the first report to the follow-up after you go home:<\/p>\n\n  <ul>\n    <li><b>Reviewing your reports<\/b> before you travel, and telling you honestly whether an\n        evaluation is worthwhile \u2014 including when the answer is no.<\/li>\n    <li><b>An interpreter<\/b>, so that you and your donor understand every conversation with\n        the medical team.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Accommodation and transfers<\/b> for the patient, the donor and accompanying family.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Complication insurance, if you want it<\/b> \u2014 we can arrange a policy for you before\n        you travel.<\/li>\n    <li><b>Kontrola po powrocie do domu<\/b> \u2014 sharing your test results with the transplant\n        team so your treatment can be adjusted from here.<\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n  <div class=\"box efsane\">\n    <span class=\"etiket\">The trap<\/span>\n    <p><b>Choosing on price alone.<\/b><\/p>\n    <p>Cost is a real consideration for most families, and it should be. But two centres with\n      similar prices can have very different experience with living donors. Compare the answers\n      to the questions above first \u2014 then compare prices.<\/p>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"yazar\">\n    <div class=\"rozet\">MT<\/div>\n    <div>\n      <h3>Medically reviewed by <a href=\"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/murat-tuncer-md\/\" style=\"color:inherit\">Profesor dr Murat Tuncer<\/a><\/h3>\n      <p>Nephrologist and transplant physician. This guide was prepared by the BookingHospital medical\n        team from published registry data, peer-reviewed studies and Turkish legislation.<\/p>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"cta\">\n    <h2>Have a family member willing to donate? Start here<\/h2>\n    <p>Send the patient's latest reports and tell us who the potential donor is and how you\n       are related. We will tell you honestly what is possible \u2014 including when the answer is\n       no.<\/p>\n    <div class=\"btns\">\n      <a class=\"btn btn-1\" href=\"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/medyczny-turystyka\/\">Prze\u015blij swoje raporty medyczne<\/a>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"uyari\">\n    <p><b>Medical and legal disclaimer.<\/b> This article is general information based on\n      published data and Turkish legislation as of September 2026. It is not medical or legal\n      advice, and it cannot replace assessment by a transplant team. Rules on donor\n      eligibility are applied by the transplant centre and, where required, the ethics\n      committee.<\/p>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"kaynak\">\n    <h3>References<\/h3>\n    <ol>\n      <li>Akbulut S, Yilmaz S. Liver transplantation in Turkey: historical review and future\n        perspectives. <i>Transplant Rev (Orlando)<\/i> 2015;29(3):161\u2013167.<\/li>\n      <li>G\u00f6k\u00e7e ON, Alkan S. Contribution of Turkey in liver transplant research: a Scopus\n        database search. <i>Exp Clin Transplant<\/i> 2023;21(5):415\u2013421.<\/li>\n      <li>Yavuz Baskiran D, Yilmaz S. A 23-year comprehensive analysis of over 4000 liver\n        transplants in T\u00fcrkiye. <i>Healthcare (Basel)<\/i> 2026;14(2):163.<\/li>\n      <li>Cheah YL, Simpson MA, Pomposelli JJ, Pomfret EA. Incidence of death and potentially\n        life-threatening near-miss events in living donor hepatic lobectomy: a world-wide\n        survey. <i>Liver Transpl<\/i> 2013;19(5):499\u2013506.<\/li>\n      <li>Republic of T\u00fcrkiye. Law No. 2238 on the Removal, Storage, Grafting and\n        Transplantation of Organs and Tissues.<\/li>\n      <li>Republic of T\u00fcrkiye, Ministry of Health. Organ Transplantation Services Regulation.\n        Official Gazette No. 32038, 9 December 2022 (as amended).<\/li>\n      <li>Republic of T\u00fcrkiye, Ministry of Health. Regulation on International Health Tourism\n        and Tourist Health. Official Gazette No. 32882, 26 April 2025.<\/li>\n    <\/ol>\n  <\/div>\n\n<\/section>\n\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Liver transplantation \u00b7 Turkey Why do so many patients travel to Turkey for a liver transplant? Cost matters to every family, and it is part of the answer. But the reason that stands up to scrutiny is one specific kind of experience \u2014 and a legal system built around protecting the donor. Here are the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_header_footer","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_joinchat":{"message_text":"Hello \ud83d\udc4b\n===\nConsidering a liver transplant in T\u00fcrkiye? Our transplant medical team can review your situation.\n===\nSend us a message with your country and whether you have a possible donor.","message_send":"Hello, I'd like information about liver transplant in T\u00fcrkiye. Country: \u2026 Possible donor: \u2026"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-liver-transplant-guide"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2988"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2995,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2988\/revisions\/2995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookinghospital.org\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}