Organs of brain-dead teenager donated to save five lives

PESHAWAR: In a landmark case for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the organs of a 14-year-old boy declared brain dead at Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC) were retrieved and sent for transplantation after his family voluntarily consented to the donation.

It marks the first documented instance of deceased organ donation in the province, benefiting five patients.Jawad, son of Noordad and a resident of Rustam village in Mardan district, was a ninth-grade student who had sustained critical head injuries in a road accident. He was shifted to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit at HMC, where neurosurgeons and critical care specialists provided treatment. Despite extensive efforts, he was declared brain dead in accordance with national medical and legal protocols.

Following the diagnosis, the boy’s family, led by his father and uncle, provided written consent for organ donation.The HMC administration immediately informed the Medical Transplant Regulatory Authority (MTRA), which initiated the official retrieval process.

A coordination meeting was convened on the night of June 5 at the office of the Medical Director, Prof Dr Shehzad Akbar Khan.It was attended by Prof Dr Asif Malik, Administrator MTRA KP, as well as transplant teams from HMC, the Institute of Kidney Diseases (IKD), the Pakistan Institute of Community Ophthalmology (PICO), and representatives of the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) and Bahria International Hospital through video link.

In the early hours of June 6, a multi-institutional surgical team carried out the retrieval procedure. The liver, both kidneys, and corneas were recovered. All medical, legal, and ethical protocols were observed under the supervision of HMC and the MTRA administration.

The operation was conducted under the directives of Maj Gen (Retd) Amjad Faheem, Chairman Board of Governors, MTI-HMC, with oversight from the hospital administration to ensure transparency and compliance with national transplant guidelines. The retrieved organs were transported to the respective institutes for transplantation into registered patients.

Prof Dr Asif Malik said the case represented a milestone for the province in building a culture of ethical organ donation and inter institutional collaboration.The body of the deceased was later transported to his native village for burial.