PUNE: Covering a distance of 210km, the liver of a 67-year-old brain-dead man from Nashik was transported to Pune in just three-and-a-half hours on Monday to save the life of a 50-year-old man. The organ was transported in an ambulance to Sahyadri hospital, Deccan branch.

It is to be transplanted into the recipient who has been suffering from an end-stage liver disease for over a year.

The road journey between the two cities, that usually takes around six hours, was completed in nearly half the time through the coordinated efforts of doctors, traffic police, district administration and ancillary staff.

The organ reached Pune around 7.30pm on Monday, after which the transplant procedure was initiated.

The surgery takes four to six hours and was still underway till the time of going to press.

"This is the 13th liver transplant at our hospital in the last three months," said Soham Bhatawadekar, senior manager (operations), Sahyadri hospital, Deccan branch.

On the night of June 26, the donor had suffered an intracranial haemorrhage (bleeding inside the skull) and was admitted to Sahyadri hospital in Nashik.

He didn't respond to the treatment and was declared brain dead the next day. His relatives were counselled for organ donation to which they readily gave their consent.

"However, since the Sahyadri hospital in Nashik is not a designated centre for organ retrieval, the donor was shifted to Rishikesh hospital.

As per the norms of Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee (ZTCC), the donated liver was allocated to Sahyadri hospital, Deccan branch, in Pune soon after," Bhatawadekar said.