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University Hospital was home to New Jersey’s first adult liver transplant program, and it just so happens to be the best nationwide.

The Center for Liver Transplantation recently earned distinction, again, as the leader for three-year liver transplantation survival, University Hospital announced last week. The hospital said its estimated three-year survival rate (97.36%) was nearly 12% higher than the national figure.

The latest Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients report came out July 9 and the Newark facility outperformed all other qualifying programs in the U.S. Physicians at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School lead the program. According to University Hospital, it transplanted 97 livers with functioning grafts between July 1, 2018, and the end of 2020.

“University Hospital continues to establish itself as a leader in patient safety and outcomes, and we are proud to once again be the national leader in long-term liver transplant survival,” commented University Hospital President and CEO Ed Jimenez. “As the first adult liver transplant program in New Jersey, we have had the unique privilege of providing patients with exceptional outcomes right in their backyard since 1989.”

Dr. Robert Johnson, the Sharon and Joseph L. Muscarelle Endowed Dean of NJMS, said the SRTR report is a testament to the program’s strength and continued excellence.

On the cutting edge

Publicly released each January and July, the SRTR is a national quality tracker provided under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The organization analyzes national data collected by the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network to develop program-specific reports.

According to University Hospital, more than 10,500 adults in the U.S. awaited liver transplants in 2022. However, only 152 health care facilities are federally designated to perform such procedures. In 2015, about 7,100 liver transplants were performed in the United States, per the National Institutes of Health.

“The institutional focus on liver transplantation at Rutgers and University Hospital allows our multidisciplinary team to stay on the cutting-edge of technology and advance clinical research to improve short- and long-term safety outcomes,” said Dr. James Guarrera, NJMS professor and chief of Transplant and Hepatobiliary Surgery and the University Hospital Liver Transplant Program director. “We are exceedingly grateful to the dozens of organ donors, families, and organizations that have given the gift of life to our patients.”

You can get the full report here.

Editor’s note: This story previously stated University Hospital had New Jersey’s only adult liver transplant program. It was updated at 3:50 p.m. ET on July 19, 2024, to clarify that the facility was first in the state to establish one.