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UAE: Mother survives rare liver, kidney transplant, walks out of hospital in 10 days
From the brink of organ failure to walking out of the hospital on her own, Nashami’s story is one of nearly 1,000 transplants performed at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi in less than a decade
- PUBLISHED: Thu 18 Sept 2025, 8:00 AM UPDATED: Thu 18 Sept 2025, 9:15 AM
When Nashami, a mother of three from Kuwait, arrived at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, her body was in silent crisis. Years of autoimmune disease had left her liver scarred and her kidneys failing. What followed was a rare and complex double transplant that not only saved her life but made her the first patient from Kuwait to undergo a combined liver-and-kidney transplant at the hospital.
Behind the numbers of nearly 1,000 successful organ transplants and more than 280 patients awaiting life-saving surgery at the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi lies the story of the extraordinary survival of Nashami.
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“She was deeply jaundiced, fatigued, with almost no appetite. Walking from her chair to the bed was an effort," said Dr Luis Campos, Director of Liver Transplantation at CCAD.
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Doctors determined that replacing only her liver would not suffice. A simultaneous transplant of both organs was necessary — a marathon operation requiring two surgical teams working side by side.
“The surgery took just under eight hours,” said Dr Campos. “It was meticulous work, like performing two major symphonies in perfect synchrony.”
The results were immediate. Within 48 hours, Nashami’s skin cleared from yellow to healthy pink. Her energy returned almost overnight, and by the tenth day, she was walking around the ward, smiling, and asking when she could return home to her children.
Rewriting the region’s transplant story
She was discharged just ten days after surgery, returning to Kuwait shortly after. Her case has sparked a wave of referrals from the GCC, with patients increasingly choosing CCAD over overseas centres.
Doctors caution against unsafe commercial transplants abroad, which have led to severe infections and complications. They urge patients to register with the UAE’s national organ donation programme, which has increased the country’s deceased donor rate from less than one per million to 15 per million in just two years.
For Dr Campos, witnessing patients like Nashami regain their lives is the most rewarding part of his work. “Within 24 to 48 hours, they tell me, ‘Doctor, I didn’t realise how sick I was until today.’ It’s like flipping a switch — they can think clearly, move, laugh, and rebuild their lives.”
From the brink of organ failure to walking out of the hospital in ten days, Nashami’s story is one of nearly 1,000 transplants performed in Abu Dhabi in less than a decade — a sign that the UAE’s transplant programme is quietly transforming healthcare across the region.
