Liver failure - is there any hope?

[Anonymous]

I have a family friend who is in the hospital for end stage liver failure. She's only 40 but she is an alcoholic. Because of the alcoholism, she isn't eligible for a transplant (has to be sober for 6 months). Her family is understandably trying to stay hopeful, but it sounds grim. Her MELD score is 40 and her kidneys are only functioning at 35%. Realistically, if she's at the point where the specialists have said her liver has failed, is there any hope of recovery? I know two people who have gone into liver failure and both passed away within a few weeks. It's such a sad situation and my heart breaks for her family.

[Anonymous]

Is she still drinking? If so, then no, there’s no hope.

If she stopped drinking and is getting treatment, then sometimes the body can amaze with its capacity to heal.

[Anonymous]

Probably not

[Anonymous]

Has she tried milk thistle?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is she still drinking? If so, then no, there’s no hope.

If she stopped drinking and is getting treatment, then sometimes the body can amaze with its capacity to heal.

As sick as she was, she was still drinking on Friday shortly before she was taken to the hospital. She's not drinking now only because she's hospitalized and in a near comatose state. She has never gotten treatment for her drinking. She was able to keep it a secret for a long time and her family is still in denial about how serious it is. They don't understand addiction.

[Anonymous]

My brother is an alcoholic and was hospitalized at the same age because of his liver. I don't know what technically qualifies as "liver failure", but he was jaundiced, emaciated except for the fluid he was retaining, hallucinating, and slipping in and out of consciousness. I came from out of state because my SIL said he might die. We were asking about liver transplants and the doctors were all vague, I think because they thought he would die.

Somehow, he made it out of the hospital alive. At that time he was told he had significant cirrhosis, and would need a transplant, but he'd have to not drink for 6 months to be eligible. As much as he wanted to drink, it turned out that he wanted to live more. He never drank again and followed all of their advice about diet and exercise and slowly regained his strength.

A while later, he was told that his liver had healed enough that he didn't need a transplant. His doctor told him that he'd never thought he'd make it out of the hospital, then he never thought he'd make it until transplant. In his wildest predictions he never thought my brother would just recover.

This was all over a decade ago and he still doesn't drink. Unfortunately, he now overeats and is unbelievably obese. We are in our 50s and it's hard for me to believe he will make it to 60.

I don't know how my brother's condition compares to your friend's but he made it. If she is able to leave the hospital she will have to not drink. And there may be also just an element of luck/grace, depending on what your beliefs are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My brother is an alcoholic and was hospitalized at the same age because of his liver. I don't know what technically qualifies as "liver failure", but he was jaundiced, emaciated except for the fluid he was retaining, hallucinating, and slipping in and out of consciousness. I came from out of state because my SIL said he might die. We were asking about liver transplants and the doctors were all vague, I think because they thought he would die.

Somehow, he made it out of the hospital alive. At that time he was told he had significant cirrhosis, and would need a transplant, but he'd have to not drink for 6 months to be eligible. As much as he wanted to drink, it turned out that he wanted to live more. He never drank again and followed all of their advice about diet and exercise and slowly regained his strength.

A while later, he was told that his liver had healed enough that he didn't need a transplant. His doctor told him that he'd never thought he'd make it out of the hospital, then he never thought he'd make it until transplant. In his wildest predictions he never thought my brother would just recover.

This was all over a decade ago and he still doesn't drink. Unfortunately, he now overeats and is unbelievably obese. We are in our 50s and it's hard for me to believe he will make it to 60.

I don't know how my brother's condition compares to your friend's but he made it. If she is able to leave the hospital she will have to not drink. And there may be also just an element of luck/grace, depending on what your beliefs are.

Thank you for sharing. I hope she's able to pull through and get the help she needs to stay sober.

[Anonymous]

I'm so sorry, OP. My cousin was in this situation and she did pass. To the point made by the pp, it seems like that appointment where they tell someone you either need to stay sober to get on the transplant list or you are going to die is key. My cousin got that news and kept drinking. It's really hard. Addiction is a disease and I know if she had been able to stop drinking she would have, but it's a lot of complex emotions when someone goes out that way.

[Anonymous]

No. There is no chance, zero, that your family friend will recover and become healthy again.

She may make it out of the hospital this time, although my prediction is that she will not. But she will rebound quickly and be admitted again soon.

It is only a short matter of time before she dies.

I work in liver transplant on the east coast. The fact that the kidneys are essentially gone, along with the liver (and probably the pancreas) means she has a very, very poor prognosis.

[Anonymous]

It is possible she will survive and either heal on her own or get sober enough for a transplant. The odds are not good but the liver can regenerate better than most organs. I applied to be a donor to a friend with liver and kidney failure (not due to drinking) and she recovered enough she didn't need a transplant, though her health is still not good. I hope your loved one pulls through. Al-Anon is a resource for friends and family either way.

[Anonymous]

I have to warn you, I had a friend who died at 32 under similar circumstances and it was incredibly awful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is she still drinking? If so, then no, there’s no hope.

If she stopped drinking and is getting treatment, then sometimes the body can amaze with its capacity to heal.

As sick as she was, she was still drinking on Friday shortly before she was taken to the hospital. She's not drinking now only because she's hospitalized and in a near comatose state. She has never gotten treatment for her drinking. She was able to keep it a secret for a long time and her family is still in denial about how serious it is. They don't understand addiction.

This is absolutely heartbreaking. Unfortunately it also gives you the answer—she’s not going to get better. I am so sorry, OP.

[Anonymous]

MELD is a prediction of 3-month survival in liver cirrhosis. 40 is the worst score possible; the range ends at 40.

I am so sorry, OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have to warn you, I had a friend who died at 32 under similar circumstances and it was incredibly awful.

OP here. Yes, my best friend's brother died of non-alcohol related cirrhosis. He was sick for about a month and it was a horrible death. I hate that her family has to go through this.

[Anonymous]

OP here. She passed away yesterday. I knew it was inevitable but I'm so sad for her family, especially her young daughter.