Apollo expects 2,000 organ transplants a yr by 2024, sees 20% sector growth

Company announces completion of 23,000 transplants on Friday; contributes to 12% of total transplants in India

Apollo, the world’s largest vertically integrated healthcare provider which contributes to around 12 per cent of the total organ transplants in India, expects the number of organ transplants by the company to touch 2,000 cases a year for the first time by 2024, and a 20 per cent per annum spike in the number of transplants in India.  

This rise will mainly be driven by higher adoption of technologies like robotics in the near future, said a top Apollo executive on Friday. The company on Friday announced the completion of 23,000 transplants since the inception of the Apollo Transplant Programme.

After clocking over 1,200 transplants annually since 2012, the programme reached new heights with 1,641 transplants in 2022, showcasing outstanding outcomes and solidifying a reputation built on trust and an unwavering commitment to delivering the highest quality of care, it said. At present around 12 per cent of over 16,000 transplants every year in India are done by Apollo.

Notably, this programme holds the distinction of being the first in India to surpass the significant milestones of 18,500 kidney transplants, 4,300 liver transplants, and 500 pediatric liver transplants. Despite the challenges posed by the peak of the 2020 Covid pandemic, 814 transplants were done by Apollo. “With an impressive track record of conducting 23,000 transplants, 30 per cent of which were for international patients, Apollo stands out as a leading contributor in the field. Notably, Apollo performs approximately 12 per cent of all transplants in India, and its expertise extends to 1 per cent of global transplant procedures,” said Prathap C Reddy, Founder Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group.

Apollo has performed transplants in patients from over 50 countries including the US, Canada, Philippines, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, Pakistan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, CIS, Myanmar, among others. “We are expecting a 20 per cent growth in transplants for the country and for us in the coming years. In the next 18 months, we are expected to cross 2,000 transplants a year,” Anupam Sibal, Group Medical Director and Senior Pediatric Gastroenterologist, at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, told Business Standard.  

Apollo Hospitals had performed the first successful liver transplants in India in an adult and child in 1998 and the first combined liver kidney transplants in 1999. “At present, we are doing over 300 robotics surgeries per year. It first shifted from open surgery to laparoscopic surgeries. Now, the trend is robotics and we expect the future growth to come from this segment,” said Sibal.

“India has attracted a lot of international patients seeking medical care because of its reputation as a leader in the field of healthcare. We have established a solid framework for both professional excellence and state of the art technology and are able to meet the complicated demands of patients while maintaining a sharp emphasis on results and care. Our vision is to bring international standard healthcare within reach of every individual, and we are committed to providing quality care across our hospitals,” said Preetha Reddy, Executive Vice-Chairperson, of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise.

The Apollo Transplant Institutes are spread over more than 24 locations, eight of which perform liver transplants and six perform multi-organ transplants, thus offering a mix of services that are equipped to take care of the entire spectrum of liver, kidney, lung and heart failure, over 250 doctors serve as consultants for the organization's solid organ transplant programme.