Cross-border heart transplant: Indian donor saves Pakistani teenager's life

A young woman from Karachi, Pakistan, and her family were given a new life through an Indian heart, following a transplant procedure at Chennai's MGM Healthcare.

The doctors and hospital did the treatment for free, thanks to the city-based Aishwaryan Trust, news channel NDTV reported.

Ayesha Rashan, the transplant recipient, is 19 years old and was admitted with severe heart dysfunction.

Her family stated that they could not have funded the procedure without the trust's and Chennai physicians' assistance.

"I feel good after the transplant," Rashan told NDTV.

The recipient's mother expressed gratitude to the doctors, hospital, and medical trust.

Rashan's condition is stable, and she can go back to Pakistan.

She experienced heart failure and was placed on ECMO, a type of life support for persons suffering from a life-threatening disease or accident that impairs the function of their heart or lungs.

But that did not help because her heart pump developed a leak in a valve, needing a complete heart transplant.

The cost of a heart transplant can go over ₹3.5 million, which would have been hard for her family to cover but Rashan's fee was covered by both doctors and the trust.

Dr KR Balakrishnan, Director (Institute of Heart and Lung Transplant), and Dr Suresh Rao, Co-Director (Institute of Heart and Lung Transplant) told NDTV that Rashan received the heart swiftly because there were no competing claims; otherwise, a foreigner cannot obtain an organ.

Currently, Tamil Nadu is the leading state in India in terms of organ donation and transplantation, due to proactive steps implemented decades ago.

Additionally, the physicians appealed to the government for a better policy, citing reports from other states that multiple viable donated organs were being discarded due to the excessive cost of the transplant.

(With inputs from agencies)