New test could help rescue discarded livers for transplant
NCT ID NCT03694691
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study aims to create a 'viability index' to predict whether a donated liver will work well after transplant. Researchers will collect small tissue samples from livers before and after transplant in 60 adults with liver cirrhosis. By measuring certain markers, they hope to develop a tool that can assess liver quality during machine perfusion, potentially increasing the number of usable donor livers.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could create a reliable test to determine which donated livers are safe to transplant, potentially increasing the number of usable livers.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early observational study with only 60 participants, so the index may not be accurate for all patients or livers. It does not test a treatment.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2018
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2030
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Male or female 18-75 years of age. * Candidate for a deceased-donor liver allograft. Exclusion Criteria: * Seropositivity for HIV-1.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Massachusetts General Hospital
RECRUITINGBoston, Massachusetts, 02114, United States
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