Tampa General Hospital (TGH) recently ranked No. 1 in the nation for transplants by volume, according to data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. With 889 transplants completed between January 1 and December 31, 2024, Tampa General also set a new national record for transplant procedures in one year.
Additionally, 2024 marked the 50th anniversary of the TGH Transplant Institute. Since 1974, the hospital’s surgeons have completed more than 14,000 transplants. As a national leader in advanced organ disease treatment and transplant surgery, Tampa General is among a few dozen hospitals in the United States to reach that milestone, driving innovation to provide world-class health care to patients before, during and after transplant surgery. TGH is the only hospital in West Central Florida to offer all five organ transplants for adult patients.
Historically, Tampa General has some of the most efficient transplant timelines in the country and in Florida, according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients. Along with ensuring that patients receive proper care, the hospital is harnessing technology for the swift transport of organ donations to increase the likelihood of a successful transplant.
For example, in 2022, Tampa General adopted the use of organ perfusion technology, which allows donor organs to function outside the body in a machine while being continuously supplied with oxygen and nutrients. This cutting-edge approach not only preserves organs for longer periods but also enables medical teams to assess and improve organ function. In many cases, perfusion technology allows Tampa General to rehabilitate organs that otherwise would not have been viable for transplant, making them suitable for recipients. By leveraging this innovation, the hospital can retrieve organs from a wider geographical area, expand access to lifesaving transplants and take on some of the most complex cases. As a result, Tampa General has shortened patient wait times and enhanced quality transplant outcomes.
Specifically, Tampa General began using the OrganOx metra device for livers, performing more than 400 perfusion transplants to date. As a result, the liver transplant program has seen a 33% increase in transplants from calendar year 2023 to 2024.
“This technology allows us to bring lifesaving liver transplants to patients who otherwise would suffer from their disease while waiting for an available organ,” said Dr. Kiran Dhanireddy, vice president and chief of the TGH Transplant Institute. “It’s also enabled us to innovate throughout all our solid organ programs. We’re now recognized as international thought leaders in liver normothermic machine perfusion.”
Access to complex care on Florida’s East Coast
Since 2020, Tampa General has established a growing network of state-of-the-art services in the Palm Beaches and on the Treasure Coast, with convenient access to complex care in Tampa, when needed. Practices such as TGH Advanced Kidney Care and TGH Digestive Health Center often refer patients to Tampa General for transplants, while offering local presurgical and postsurgical care. In addition, TGH Digestive Health Center’s Dr. Sonja K. Olsen is Palm Beach and Martin counties’ only transplant hepatologist.
For more information about the TGH Transplant Institute, visit TGH.org/Transplant.
