In death, teenager gives life to 3 others

Kolkata: 15-year-old Mallika Majumdar from Siliguri, who would have celebrated her 16th birthday in November, on Saturday became the youngest organ donor in the state, giving a new spell of life to three people who received her kidneys and liver while one of her corneas and part of her skin have been preserved.

The state government's continuous efforts to promote organ donation has once again brought fruitful results. The incidents of organ donation have increased in the state due to proactive efforts by the state Health department which has been working closely with the Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (ROTTO).

Mallika was admitted to SSKM Hospital with an infection in one of her ears. It was learnt from the hospital sources that the infection spread to her brain gradually. The patient was declared brain dead by the doctors at SSKM Hospital on Friday morning.

The family members were urged to donate her organs thereby keeping her memory alive in the lives of others who would be saved through the transplants. After counselling, her family members agreed to donate her organs. All the necessary procedures were completed in minimum possible time, including the clearance from the state Health department.

A green corridor facilitated by the Kolkata Police ensured that the donated liver reached Apollo Gleneagles Hospital on EM Bypass in less than 20 minutes after it was retrieved from the donor at SSKM Hospital. The process of extracting organs was started at SSKM at around 12.30 am on Saturday. The liver was packed in a temperature-controlled box and put on an ambulance that set out for the Apollo Gleneagles Hospital around 5.30 am.

The recipient of the liver is a 44-year-old man from Hyderabad who had been on the transplant wait list. The recipient was flown to Kolkata for the transplant surgery on Friday at midnight. After his arrival at Kolkata airport, he was rushed to Apollo Gleneagles while the retrieval of the donor liver was in progress at SSKM Hospital. The liver was later transplanted in the patient successfully. Two kidneys were extracted and later transplanted into two patients who were undergoing treatment at the SSKM Hospital. They are Moumita Chakraborty, a resident of Khardah and Sanjib Das, a resident of Sodepur in North 24-Parganas.

Two separate groups comprising three doctors in each conducted the transplant on both the patients in two different operation theatres. The operations continued till 7 am on Saturday. The retina of the brain dead victim has been kept at the hospital while her skin will be preserved at the skin bank.