Assam govt hospital performs state’s first liver transplant

Guwahati, October 24 (IANS): Assam has achieved a major milestone in public healthcare with the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) performing the first liver transplant in a government hospital in the state, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Saturday.In a post on X, Sarma said a 48-year-old man from Kamrup Metropolitan district underwent the 16-hour-long surgery, during which he received a portion of his liver from his younger sister. Both the donor and recipient are recovering in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) under close medical supervision, he added.Congratulating the medical team involved in the procedure, the Chief Minister described the achievement as a significant step towards strengthening Assam's public healthcare infrastructure and expanding access to advanced, life-saving treatment within the state."Assam is building a public healthcare system that matches the best in the country, and today we crossed another milestone," Sarma said in his post.He said the state government had launched its Liver Transplantation programme in 2025 with the objective of making complex medical procedures available in government hospitals, reducing the need for patients to travel outside Assam for specialised treatment.According to the Chief Minister, the successful procedure demonstrated that the initiative was beginning to deliver results and marked an important development in the state's efforts to expand tertiary healthcare services.Sarma also outlined the government's broader plans to strengthen specialised treatment facilities across Assam. These include the development of a statewide cancer care network, the introduction of bone marrow transplantation services at GMCH and the proposed establishment of a proton beam therapy unit in Guwahati.The proposed facility, he said, would be India's first proton beam therapy unit in the public sector, potentially expanding access to advanced cancer treatment through government healthcare infrastructure.The Chief Minister said the government was working towards positioning Assam as a major healthcare destination in eastern India, with improved facilities intended to serve patients from within the state and neighbouring regions."Our goal is clear: Assam will be the healthcare hub of Eastern India. Patients will no longer leave Assam for treatment; they will come to Assam for it," Sarma said.The successful liver transplant is expected to strengthen confidence in the capacity of Assam's public medical institutions to undertake complex procedures and expand the range of specialised healthcare services available to patients within the state.