A team of specialists at London's Cromwell Hospital's Liver Centre saved the life of 43-year-old Mehry Shojai by replacing her damaged organ with a piece of healthy liver from her daughter Arezoo.

Mrs Shojai, who was suffering liver failure due to end-stage cirrhosis after long-term hepatitis, is said to be doing well after the 11-hour operation.

Arezoo, 19, is almost well enough to be discharged, doctors said.

The pair travelled from their home in Iran to Britain for the life-saving surgery which involved removing the left lobe of Arezoo's liver to replace her mother's entire organ.

Within a month, both the daughter's remaining liver and her mother's new single lobe should grow to normal size and will function normally.

Professor Roger Williams, director of the Cromwell Centre for Liver Disease, who was part of the team of surgeons who carried out the operation, said: "Both patients are recovering extremely well. We believe this is the first of many where the criteria indicate that a living related transplant is the best option for the patient."

Professor Williams, a consultant hepatologist, added: "For some patients, for example with certain tissue and blood groups, there may be a long waiting time for suitable donors. A donor organ would not have been obtained in time to save this patient."

Pioneered in Japan

Living related transplants, which have already been successfully carried out in Japan, have the advantage over normal donor transplants as the surgery can be planned.

The period between taking the liver section out of the donor and putting it into the recipient is also very short, ensuring the condition of the liver is at its best.

A spokeswoman from the British Liver Trust said: "We are delighted that this transplant has proved a possibility. It adds another dimension to the treatment of chronic liver diseases.

"There is a shortage of donor organs available for transplant and we welcome this development."

Adult-to-child living donor liver transplants have been successfully carried out for some time, using a small part of one side of the adult donor liver.