* Billy Sewell, 24, had just hours to live when surgeons got the go-ahead to transplant a slice of liver from his best friend
* Luke Gumble, also 24, underwent a range of medical and psychological tests before he was allowed to donate
Transplant surgeons have carried out a record-breaking live liver transplant operation to save a young man on the verge of death.
Billy Sewell, 24, had just hours to live when surgeons got the go-ahead to transplant a slice of liver from his best friend.
Normally such operations take weeks of planning.
But in just 48 hours, Luke Gumble underwent a range of medical tests and a battery of psychological interviews to allow him to donate.
It is believed to be the first time a live liver transplant has been approved so quickly.
A team of doctors, scientists, transplant co-ordinators and medical ethicists at London’s Royal Free Hospital worked at break-neck speed to make it possible for Mr Gumble to give a chunk of his liver.
Mr Sewell did not have time on his side - he was literally on the edge of death when liver surgeons decided that his closest friend, also 24, was his only hope of survival.
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