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CION Cancer Clinics
Who can be a living liver donor in India? | CION Cancer Clinics
A living liver donor in India is usually a healthy adult relative with a compatible blood group, a normal liver of the right size, and a free choice to donate. Close relatives can donate after checks, others need approval from a state committee, and paying for an organ is illegal. This page explains the rules, the tests and the risks, so a family can talk it through without pressure. At CION Cancer Clinics, a multidisciplinary tumour board weighs your liver function and your scans before recommending any treatment.
MM
Medically reviewed by Dr. Muralidhar MuddusettyConsultant Surgical Oncologist · MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery, AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh) · last reviewed October 2026, next review due October 2027
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On this page
- Who is allowed to donate part of their liver in India?
- What does a transplant team look for in a donor?
- What tests does a living liver donor go through?
- Does the donor have to be a family member?
- What do families get wrong about liver donation?
- Who usually cannot be a living liver donor?
- What this page cannot tell you
- Common questions about becoming a liver donor
The short answer
Who is allowed to donate part of their liver in India?
A living liver donor in India is usually a healthy adult relative of the patient, with a compatible blood group, a healthy liver of the right size, and a free choice to donate. Indian law allows close relatives to donate after checks. Anyone else needs special approval from a government committee. Buying or selling an organ is a crime.
Why the checks are so strict
The donor is a well person having a major operation for someone else's benefit. The surgeon removes part of the donor's liver, which grows back over the following weeks. Every test before that is there to protect the donor first. A transplant team will turn a donor down, even one who is keen, if the risk to them looks too high.
What this page is for
This page explains the rules and the checks so a family can talk about it calmly. It does not ask anyone to donate. Whether to offer is a personal decision, and saying no is always acceptable. For the wider picture, read living donor liver transplant in India.
A donor can withdraw at any point before the operation, without giving a reason.The basic requirements
What does a transplant team look for in a donor?
Each licensed transplant centre sets its own exact limits. These are the areas every centre checks.
Age and general health
The donor must be an adult. Centres also set an upper age limit, because recovery is harder later in life. The donor should have no serious heart, lung or kidney disease and no active infection.
A healthy liver
The donor's own liver must be normal. Fatty liver, past hepatitis B or C, or heavy drinking can all rule a donor out or delay donation. Some donors are asked to lose weight and be tested again.
The right size of liver
Scans measure the liver to make sure the piece given is big enough for the patient, and the piece left behind is big enough for the donor. If either part is too small, donation does not go ahead.
Also checked on the scan
- The pattern of blood vessels
- The pattern of bile ducts
A compatible blood group
The donor's blood group usually needs to match or suit the patient's. Some centres can work across blood groups with extra treatment, but this adds risk. See blood group matching.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistHow a donor is assessed
What tests does a living liver donor go through?
A first conversation and blood tests
The transplant centre explains the operation and the risks, then checks blood group, liver and kidney function, and infections such as hepatitis and HIV. Many people stop here, and that is normal.
Scans of the liver
A CT or MRI measures the liver's size and maps its blood vessels and bile ducts. Some centres also do a liver stiffness test or, rarely, a biopsy to check for fat.
Heart, lung and general fitness
Heart tests, a chest scan and other checks make sure the donor can safely have a long operation under general anaesthetic.
Psychological and independent review
A psychologist or psychiatrist talks to the donor alone, to make sure the choice is free and understood. Doctors not involved in the patient's care often assess the donor separately.
Legal approval
Papers proving the relationship go to the hospital's authorisation committee, or to the state committee for donors who are not close relatives.
What the law says
Does the donor have to be a family member?
Near relative donor
Any other donor
Spouse, parent, child, brother, sister, grandparent or grandchild
A friend, an in-law or a more distant relative
Relationship proved with documents and sometimes a DNA test
Must show genuine affection or attachment, with no money involved
Approved by the hospital's authorisation committee
Approved by a state-level authorisation committee, which may take longer
Free consent still checked in private
Committee questions both people closely
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Commonly believed
What do families get wrong about liver donation?
"Giving part of your liver is completely safe because it grows back."
The liver does regrow, but the operation is major. Donors can have bleeding, a bile leak, infection or a long recovery, and there is a small but real risk of death. Read what happens to the donor before anyone decides.
"The eldest son is expected to donate."
No one is obliged to donate because of their place in the family. The team assesses each willing person on their own health and choice. A person who feels pressured should tell the team privately.
"If no relative matches, we can find a paid donor."
Paying for an organ is illegal in India, for the family, the donor and any middleman. A deceased donor organ through the state programme, such as Jeevandan in Telangana, is the lawful route.
"A woman cannot donate after having children."
Having had children does not stop a woman donating. Women thinking of a future pregnancy should discuss timing with the transplant team before agreeing.
Who this does not suit
Who usually cannot be a living liver donor?
Some people are ruled out early. A donor who is under adult age, is pregnant, has a significant fatty liver, carries hepatitis B or C, or has serious heart, lung or kidney disease will usually not be accepted. Current heavy alcohol use or drug use, or a past cancer, may also exclude a donor.
When the choice is not free
A donor who is unsure, who is being pressured by relatives, or who is offered money or favours will not be accepted. The team protects these people. A centre can tell the family that a donor is "not medically suitable" without giving the private reason.
When the patient is not a candidate
Donor assessment only starts once the patient is confirmed suitable for a transplant. If the cancer has spread or is too advanced, a donor is not asked to take on any risk. The transplant criteria decide that first.
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
It cannot tell you whether a particular family member can donate. Only the licensed transplant centre, after its own tests, can decide that. Each centre sets its own exact age, weight and liver-size limits, and they change over time.
It is not legal advice
The rules on who can donate come from national transplant law and state authorisation committees, and the paperwork changes. This page describes them as of 2026 in general terms. Check the current requirements with the transplant centre's coordinator before collecting documents.
Where CION fits
CION's oncologists can review the cancer, explain whether a transplant is likely to be an option, and coordinate with a licensed transplant centre. CION does not find, arrange or assess donors, and has no part in waiting-list decisions.
If anyone offers to arrange a donor for money, refuse and tell the transplant centre.Questions we are asked
Common questions about becoming a liver donor
Can my wife or husband donate part of their liver?
Yes. A spouse counts as a near relative under Indian law, so the marriage must be proved with documents. Blood group, liver health and liver size still have to suit. The centre will also speak to the spouse alone to make sure the choice is freely made.
Does the donor need the same blood group?
Usually the blood groups need to be the same or compatible. Some centres can transplant across blood groups using extra treatment before the operation, but this carries more risk for the patient. Ask the centre whether it does this and what it means for you.
Can a friend donate?
Possibly, but only with approval from a state-level authorisation committee. The committee must be satisfied the donor acts out of affection, not for money or favours. The process takes longer and is examined closely, and it varies between states.
Will the donor's liver grow back fully?
In a healthy donor the remaining liver grows back towards its normal size over the following weeks. Liver function usually returns to normal. This is why the donor's own liver must be healthy to begin with, and why a fatty or damaged liver rules a donor out.
What are the risks to the donor?
Bleeding, infection, bile leaks, blood clots and a long recovery can all happen. There is a small but real risk of death. The transplant centre should explain its own figures to the donor in private. Read the donor risks page before anyone agrees.
Can a donor change their mind?
Yes, at any point before the operation, without giving a reason. The team can tell the family the donor is not suitable without saying why. No one should be made to feel they owe a part of their liver to a relative.
Who pays for the donor's tests and operation?
The donor's tests and surgery are usually part of the transplant bill, but this differs between centres, insurers and schemes. Ask the centre for a written estimate that lists the donor's costs separately, and check what any scheme or insurer covers.
What if no one in the family can donate?
The patient can be registered for a deceased donor organ through the state programme, such as Jeevandan in Telangana, if they qualify. Other cancer treatments may also suit. Call the CION helpline and the team will explain the options for your situation.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's liver cancer specialists. Bring your scan reports and liver blood tests.
Our medical and surgical oncologists plan liver cancer care together, weighing the tumour and how well your liver works before choosing surgery, a liver-directed procedure or medicines.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
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Sources
- NOTTO (MoHFW) — NOTTO
- MedlinePlus — Liver Transplantation
- NIDDK — Liver Transplant - NIDDK
- NHS Blood and Transplant — Liver - Organ transplantation - NHS Blood and Transplant
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
What happens to the donor: risks and recoveryRead this before anyone in the family agreesBlood group matching for liver donationWhich blood groups can donate to whichLiving donor liver transplant in IndiaHow living donation works from start to finishJeevandan: Telangana's organ donation programmeThe lawful route when no relative can donate
Talk to us
Is a transplant even an option for your relative?
Before anyone thinks about donating, our oncologists can review the cancer and explain whether a transplant is likely to suit. One helpline serves every CION centre.