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Sam Vanderpump Reconsiders Living-Donor Liver Transplant as Brother Undergoes Tests

Fresh facts on donor screening, with a strong UK safety record, have pushed him to explore a family donation route.

Overview

  • Vanderpump, who spoke on Good Morning Britain on Tuesday, said he first declined his mother’s offer but is now open to a living-donor transplant as his brother enters suitability tests and his mother has been ruled out.
  • He remains on the NHS waiting list with end-stage liver disease from congenital hepatic fibrosis and polycystic kidney disease, and doctors told him his life expectancy without a transplant is about four years.
  • He said only about 20% of would‑be living donors pass rigorous screening and he cited no recorded UK fatalities among live donors, a safety picture he credits with changing his view.
  • His wife, Alice, said the birth of their son, Marmaduke, shaped their choices because they did not want to miss an option that could help him.
  • The two-part E4 documentary airing Tuesday and Wednesday follows his search for a transplant and explains how living donation works, where a portion of a healthy liver is transplanted and both livers regrow over months, which can shorten the wait if a match is found.