The Spillover Effects of Extending Liver Transplantation to Patients with Colorectal Liver Metastases: A Discrete Event Simulation Analysis.

Background: Liver transplantation is an alternative treatment for patients with nonresectable colorectal cancer liver-only metastases (CRLM); however, the potential effects on wait-list time and life expectancy to other patients on the transplant waiting list have not been considered. We explored the potential effects of expanding liver transplantation eligibility to include patients with CRLM on wait-list time and life expectancy in Norway.

Methods: We developed a discrete event simulation model to reflect the Norwegian liver transplantation waiting list process and included 2 groups: 1) patients currently eligible for liver transplantation and 2) CRLM patients.