Abstract
Living related liver transplantaton (LRLT) has been established in Japan as a therapeutic means not only of life relief but also of improving the quality of life of patients with severely impaired liver function caused by such incurrable liver conditions as cholestatic diseases, liver cirrhosis, inborn metabolic disorders and so on. Liver transplantation from brain dead cadaver (cadaveric liver transplantation: CLT) solves an unavoidable disadvantage of LRLT, i. e. injuring a healthy person, and produces almost the same survival rate as that of LRLT, It is feasible for receipients if a better strategy between LRLT and CLT could be selected in accordance with receipients' condition. We should widely propagate the importance of organ donation from brain dead cadavers in Japan since the law of brain dead cadaveric organ transplantation was anounced in 1997.
