Manipal Hospitals has introduced the Manipal Comprehensive Transplant Centre in Kolkata, offering advanced transplant services for heart, kidney, liver and bone marrow. The facility was launched on the occasion of World Kidney Day.
The centre aims to strengthen organ transplant services in Eastern India, where demand for such procedures has been rising. It brings together specialists from cardiology, nephrology, hepatology, urology, oncology and transplant surgery to deliver coordinated transplant care.
The new unit will provide complete support for transplant patients—from medical evaluation and surgery to post-operative recovery and long-term monitoring—through a multidisciplinary clinical approach and specialised infrastructure.
During the launch event, doctors from the hospital network discussed the need to expand transplant services in the region. Kunal Sarkar, Director and Senior Consultant – Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at Manipal Hospitals Mukundapur Cluster, highlighted the status of heart transplantation in Eastern India.
Kidney transplant trends were discussed by Dilip Kumar Pahari, Director – Nephrology at Manipal Hospitals EM Bypass, and Upal Sengupta, Director – Team Nephrology and Clinical Lead at Manipal Hospital Dhakuria and Senior Consultant at Manipal Hospitals Broadway, Salt Lake and Mukundapur. Meanwhile, Rajib De, Consultant and Clinical Lead – Clinical Haematology, Haemato-Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant at Manipal Hospital EM Bypass, spoke about developments in bone marrow transplantation in the region.
Emphasising the importance of coordinated care, Sengupta said:
“Kidney transplantation remains the most effective treatment for patients suffering from end-stage renal disease. However, the gap between demand and availability of transplants continues to be a major challenge in India. Every year, nearly 2 lakh patients in the country require a kidney transplant, but only around 5,000 to 7,000 procedures are performed. With the launch of the Manipal Comprehensive Transplant Centre, we aim to strengthen multidisciplinary transplant care in Eastern India by bringing together specialists across nephrology, urology, critical care and transplant surgery, ensuring seamless evaluation, surgery and long-term follow-up for patients.”
A panel discussion, moderated by Sengupta, also explored the challenges and opportunities for improving transplant care in the region. The panel included Arghya Majumdar, Avinandan Banerjee, Smartya Pulai, Ranjan Sarkar, Abhay Kumar, T. K. Saha, P. K. Mishra, Bastab Ghosh and Rajiv Sinha.
Commenting on the launch, Ayanabh Debgupta, Regional Director – East, Manipal Hospitals, said:
“The launch of the Manipal Comprehensive Transplant Centre marks an important milestone for healthcare in Eastern India. The region has a significant and growing burden of organ failure driven by conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and chronic kidney disease. Across India, the demand for organ transplants far exceeds availability, with tens of thousands of patients currently on transplant waitlists for kidneys, livers and hearts every year, while only a fraction of these procedures are performed. Through this comprehensive centre, we aim to bring together world-class expertise, advanced infrastructure and a multidisciplinary care model to strengthen transplant services in the region, improve patient outcomes and promote greater awareness around organ donation.”
With the launch of this specialised transplant facility, Manipal Hospitals aims to improve access to advanced organ transplant care in Eastern India while promoting greater awareness about organ donation and multidisciplinary treatment for patients with organ failure.
(The above image is for illustrative purposes only)