How long do heart transplants last?
Emma Martin
Updated on April 28, 2026
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Then, what is the average life expectancy of a heart transplant patient?
9.16 years
Subsequently, question is, why do heart transplants only last 10 years? Heart transplants are likely to become obsolete within 10 years, because they help so few people, a leading heart surgeon has said. Currently around 15,000 people under 65 each year in Britain could benefit from a heart transplant, but there are only around 150 organs available annually.
Just so, what is the longest surviving heart transplant patient?
The world's longest-surviving heart transplant patient has died, 33 years after his life-saving operation. John McCafferty was told he had only five years to live when he received the transplant at Harefield Hospital in west London, on 20 October 1982.
How long do transplanted organs last?
How an organ transplant will affect a person's life expectancy varies depending on their age, the organ transplanted, and the reason for the transplant. Not all transplanted organs last forever. A kidney from a living donor lasts an average of 12–20 years, whereas a kidney from a deceased donor lasts around 8–12 years.
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