In a rare and urgent cross-border medical effort, doctors in Riyadh successfully transplanted a donor heart into a seven-year-old Saudi boy suffering from end-stage heart failure. The heart, retrieved from a brain-dead donor in Abu Dhabi, was transported to Saudi Arabia and implanted in a high-risk surgery coordinated between Saudi and UAE health authorities. This lifesaving procedure underscores both the precision of transplant logistics and the increasing strength of regional healthcare partnerships andcooperation.

Faisal, a seven-year-old Saudi child, was battling advanced heart failure caused by a congenital defect present since birth. Despite exhaustive treatment attempts, including various medications, respiratory support, and even pacemaker implantation, his condition showed no significant improvement. The severity of his illness necessitated immediate placement on the urgent heart transplant list. With no other viable options left, the transplant became a race against time.The transplant’s success hinged on a narrow five-hour window, the maximum time allowed from organ extraction to transplantation to maintain viability. This time sensitivity posed a significant challenge, especially as the donor was located abroad in Abu Dhabi. Coordinating the extraction, air transport, and preparation of surgical teams required meticulous planning and swift action.According to Dr. Felix Wang Tsai, pediatric cardiology surgery consultant at KFSHRC, Faisal arrived in very critical condition, making the transplant his only chance at survival. KFSHRC typically performs only 10 to 15 heart transplants annually, emphasizing the critical need to increase donor availability within Saudi Arabia to support more patients like Faisal.

Seamless cross-border cooperation

The transplant was made possible through the collaboration of the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation and the UAE’s National Program for Donation and Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissue (Hayat). The process involved consent from the donor’s family and all necessary regulatory approvals, underscoring a strong humanitarian partnership between the two countries.Ahmad Jaafari, director of donor affairs and organ allocation at the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation, described how donor data was quickly analyzed and shared with KFSHRC, where Faisal was listed as a high priority patient. With approvals from the Ministry of Health’s medical ethics center, a specialized medical team and private aircraft were dispatched to Abu Dhabi for organ retrieval and rapid transfer. Dr. Hani Al-Sergani, executive director of the Heart Centre of Excellence at KFSHRC, told Arab News that this case exemplifies the maturity of Gulf healthcare collaboration. He emphasized that the successful transplant within hours showcased regional cooperation’s vital role in expanding life-saving opportunities.In a statement, the hospital said, “This marks another successful case of advanced regional cooperation in organ transplantation,”The hospital further confirmed that the life-saving procedure was carried out only after securing donor family consent, all necessary regulatory approvals, and close coordination between the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation and the UAE’s National Program for Donation and Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissue.

KFSHRC’s Heart Centre, recognized globally for its advanced cardiac care, played a pivotal role in Faisal’s successful transplant. The hospital has pioneered several groundbreaking cardiac surgeries, including the world’s first fully robotic heart transplant and robotic implantation of artificial heart pumps (BiVAD-HMIII) without chest incisions. These innovations have placed KFSHRC at the forefront of cardiac surgery, cementing its status as the leading cardiac center in the Middle East and North Africa and ranking 15th globally among the world’s top academic medical centers.In 2024, the hospital delivered 293,381 virtual consultations, marking a 58.2% increase year-on-year, reflecting its expanding healthcare reach and integration of advanced technologies. The successful transplant of Faisal’s heart is another milestone in KFSHRC’s mission to provide specialized, cutting-edge care.