Auxiliary Liver Transplantation for Cirrhosis: From APOLT to RAPID: A Scoping Review

To survey the available literature regarding the use of auxiliary liver transplantation (ALT) in the setting of cirrhosis.

ALT is a type of liver transplantation (LT) procedure in which part of the cirrhotic liver is resected and part of the liver graft is transplanted. The cirrhotic liver left in situ acts as an auxiliary liver until the graft has reached sufficient volume. Recently, a 2-stage concept named RAPID (Resection and Partial Liver segment 2/3 transplantation with Delayed total hepatectomy) was developed, which combines hypertrophy of the small graft followed by delayed removal of the native liver.

A scoping review of the literature on ALT for cirrhosis was performed, focusing on the historical background of RAPID and the status of RAPID for this indication. The new comprehensive nomenclature for hepatectomy ("New World" terminology) was used in this review.

A total of 72 cirrhotic patients underwent ALT [heterotopic (n = 34), orthotopic (Auxiliary partial orthotopic liver transplantation, n = 34 including 5 followed by resection of the native liver at the second stage) and RAPID (n = 4)]. Among the 9 2-stage LTs (APOLT, n = 5; RAPID, n = 4), portal blood flow modulation was performed in 6 patients by deportalization of the native liver (n = 4), portosystemic shunt creation (n = 1), splenic artery ligation (n = 3) or splenectomy (n = 1). The delay between the first and second stages ranged from 18 to 90 days. This procedure led to an increase in the graft-to-recipient weight ratio between 33% and 156%. Eight patients were alive at the last follow-up.

Two-stage LT and, more recently, the RAPID procedure are viable options for increasing the number of transplantations for cirrhotic patients by using small grafts.