On Friday, doctors of the state-run SSKM Hospital decided to transplant the liver of Joydev Pal, a resident of Birbhum, into Jayati Chatterjee, a resident of Behala. Pal, a day labourer, had died of head injuries and his family had consented to the transplantation.

Till late last night, surgeons were busy with the surgery and there was hope that Chatterjee would be able to undergo the transplant. But complications arose since morning and family members said she died in the evening. “She died at 4.10 pm and we know that the doctors tried their best to save her. The transplant was a success but there is always a chance that the victim’s system may reject the donor organ as happened in this case,” said Pradip Chatterjee, the patient’s husband.

He said he first heard of his wife’s death from his relatives who heard it from a few media channels. “I was not told anything, but my relatives called me up to break the news. The transplant had gone well and we had hoped she might be able to survive,” said Chatterjee. The hospital authorities, too, said the patient did not take the transplant well. “We heard she was in a serious condition as she had not taken the transplant well,” said Debashish Bhattacharya, medical superintendent, SSKM Hospital.

Meanwhile, Abhijit Chowdhury, head of gastro-enterology department at the SSKM and one of the chief doctors in-charge of the transplant, said the patient died due to medical complications.

“The coagulation factor in the liver did not work too well and she developed asegotysis in the morning and collapsed around 4.10 pm. She had been admitted to ICU many times and she was almost at the last stage of her life, which was the reason why she needed the transplant. But 20 per cent of such transplants prove fatal and unfortunately she was in that group,” said Chowdhury, adding in spite of the ventilation, her condition continued to deteriorate since morning.