8-year-old child becomes the first to receive a liver transplant from a live donor
Riyadh
When technological precision meets the compassion of medicine, healing becomes a story worth telling. This is what unfolded at King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre (KFSHRC) Riyadh, where an eight-year-old child underwent a life-saving liver lobe transplant using an advanced robotic surgical system, after liver failure had exhausted his small body and deprived him of his childhood. The high-precision technology enabled the young patient to be discharged just two weeks after surgery, half the usual recovery time, allowing him to return to a normal childhood. The medical team described the outcome as the essence of their striving to achieve.
The child’s condition required urgent intervention, complicated by the small body size and the limited space available for surgical access. However, KFSHRC’s extensive experience with robotic organ transplants in adults paved the way for adapting the technology to a paediatric case. A tailored surgical plan was developed, involving precisely repositioning the robotic instrument entry points to accommodate the child’s anatomy.
Professor Dieter Broering, Executive Director of the Organ Transplant Centre of Excellence and lead surgeon on the case, explained : "Robotic surgical techniques have traditionally been limited to adults, but we succeeded in adapting them for children, offering exceptional precision and a marked reduction in complications. The transplant required redesigning the surgical approach to suit the child’s small body and confined space, which we addressed by meticulously adjusting the entry sites for the robotic tools to ensure maximum safety."
The procedure was successfully performed by extracting the left lobe from a living donor and fully transplanting it into the child, using a robotic surgical system, without any direct manual intervention. This approach significantly minimized the size of surgical incisions. It accelerated the recovery process, allowing the child to be discharged within two weeks, compared to the usual month-long hospital stay for similar transplants.
This operation represents a ground-breaking model for expanding robotic surgery in paediatric care. The technology offers exact control, reduces surgical complications, and enhances overall safety, paving the way for the future development of child-specific robotic surgical systems.
This achievement is part of a series of milestones positioning KFSHRC as a global leader in robotic surgery. The hospital previously performed the world’s first fully robotic heart transplant and the world’s first robotic liver transplant—advancements that garnered attention from both local and international media. These breakthroughs reflect KFSHRC’s commitment to pioneering innovative medical solutions and delivering world-class specialized healthcare.
The accomplishment also represents a success of the Health Sector Transformation Program, one of the key initiatives under Saudi Vision 2030, launched by H.R.H Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Prime Minister of the Kingdom. It stands as a testament to the quality of healthcare provided to all people in Saudi Arabia.
It is noteworthy that KFSHRC has been ranked first in the Middle East and Africa and 15th globally in the list of the world’s top 250 Academic Medical Centres for the third consecutive year and recognised as the most valuable healthcare brand in the Kingdom and the Middle East, according to the 2025 Brand Finance rankings. Additionally, it was included in Newsweek magazine's World’s Best Smart Hospitals list for 2025. For more information, visit www.kfshrc.edu.sa or contact our media team at
Mediacoverage@KFSHRC.edu.sa
