Ireland's first heart and liver transplant recipient thanks donor for 'second chance'

Martin Malinowski with his consultants Dr Emer Joyce, transplant cardiologist at the Mater Hospital, and Dr Zita Galvin, transplant hepatologist at St Vincent’s University Hospital. Picture: Julien Behal

The man who had Ireland’s first combined heart and liver transplant has thanked his donor for his “second chance” as he prepares to return to work after months of illness.

The operation to give Martin Malinowski, 30, a new heart and liver on the same day late last year took 12 hours between preparation and surgery, with 30 to 40 people in the theatre and up to 50 involved altogether.

“I want to thank my donor for giving me a second chance. I’m very thankful to my donor and the donor’s family, they literally saved my life,” he said.

Living in Castleblaney, Co Monaghan, Mr Malinowski was diagnosed in early 2019 with cirrhosis of the liver, due to Hepatitis C. This led to strain on his heart and he developed cardiomyopathy, or heart failure.

By the summer of 2021 he was finding it extremely difficult to walk, and was frequently out of breath. He struggled through final year computer science exams and went for a check-up.

“I had to be immediately admitted to hospital with a critically low heartbeat. I was quickly put on the transplant list by my medical team,” he said.

Now in recovery, he is already walking for an hour daily, doing exercises at home, and focusing on a good diet.

“Everything is different,” he said. “I feel like a healthy person now, I have a lot of energy. I didn’t even know how sick I was, it’s only now I can feel the difference because my heart was deteriorating over so many years.”

Organ donor cards

Martin Malinowski has called on people to carry organ donor cards.

Mr Malinowski said all his friends and family now carry organ donor cards, and he called on everyone to sign up.

“Maybe one day you will save somebody else’s life or someone will save your life, you just never know,” he said.

The transplant involved the Mater Hospital’s National Heart and Lung Unit and St Vincent’s Hospital’s National Liver Transplant Unit.

Dr Emer Joyce, transplant cardiologist at the Mater, said only about 200 heart and liver transplants take place in America annually with “much smaller numbers” around the world.

“The fact that this is a first for Ireland and that it took place during the Covid-19 pandemic really highlights how strong Ireland’s transplant teams are and the importance of cross-hospital collaboration,” she said.

Dr Zita Galvin, transplant hepatologist at St Vincent's, described the transplants as “exciting” but said it will remain unusual as not every patient is suitable for multi-organ transplants.

“This is a new chapter for transplant generally in Ireland, where we would have more collaboration across the organ groups,” she said.

“The key thing is to raise awareness of organ donation and how transplantation can save lives. Our key message is not necessarily we will try to do tons more multi-organ transplants but that we will continue to work together to assess any suitable patients.”

Both consultants urged the public to discuss organ donation with their families.

“Martin’s outcome was only really possible because of the organ donor and the gift of life no matter what processes we had in place or took on,” Dr Joyce said.