Prof. Dr. Mohamed Rela

Talk to anyone in the liver transplant world and Prof. Dr. Mohamed Rela’s name will come up as one of the true pioneers of the field. He’s been operating for more than 31 years and has personally performed over 6,000 liver transplants — a number very few surgeons anywhere in the world come close to. He currently leads the Dr. Rela Institute and Medical Centre in Chennai.

What really sets Prof. Dr. Mohamed Rela apart is his work on split liver transplantation, a technique where a single deceased-donor liver is divided and transplanted into two separate patients, effectively doubling the chance of survival from one organ. Back in December 1997, his team performed a liver transplant on a baby girl who was only five days old at the time — a case so remarkable it landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records in 2000. That same girl is now, decades later, a 20-year-old law student.

He earned his doctorate in liver transplantation from Kings College Hospital, London, and has gone on to publish over 400 research papers and academic works covering liver transplants, hepatobiliary surgery, and pancreatic procedures. He also currently serves as Director of the Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation.

Education

• MBBS – University of Madras, India (1982)
• MS – University of Madras, India (1987)
• FRCS – Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, UK (1988)
• DSc (Honoris Causa) – The Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, India (2013)

Areas of Expertise

• Liver transplantation (including split liver transplants)
• Hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery
• Pediatric liver transplant surgery
• Complex liver and bile duct procedures
• Chronic liver disease management

Prof. Dr. Mohamed Rela is also a member of the Tamil Nadu Medical Council, the European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT), and the Indian Society of Organ Transplantation (ISOT). For patients considering liver transplant surgery in India, especially complex or pediatric cases, he remains one of the most trusted names to consult.