Utah’s 1st Pediatric Paired Liver Transplant Saves Two Children at Intermountain Primary Children’s

September 26, 2025 at 19:11 PM EDT

Organ Donors and Recipients of Utah’s First Pediatric Paired Liver Exchange and Transplant Meet for First Time at Intermountain Primary Children's Hospital

(PRUnderground) September 26th, 2025

Caregivers and families are celebrating a Utah medical first at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City – the state’s first pediatric paired exchange and liver transplant that helped save the lives of two young children.

Those families met on Friday for the first time following this historic medical event.

“It’s incredible to see these two families meet each other for the first time and to witness the positive impact of their selflessness,” said Zach Kastenberg, MD, director of pediatric surgical oncology at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital. “To see these children thriving, knowing their past struggles is an absolute joy for caregivers at this hospital.”

The parents of 7-month-old Elie Tibbs from St. George discovered she had a rare liver disorder called biliary atresia, which blocks the bile ducts and causes a dangerous back up in the organ. Her father, Justin, immediately volunteered to donate part of his liver, but discovered it was too big for Elie’s body.

At the same time, 15-year-old Marissa Kauffman was being treated for primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a rare liver disease in which an overactive immune system attacks and inflames bile ducts in the liver, leading to scaring, and causes a backup.

Kauffman’s neighbor, Annie, was willing to donate part of her liver, but the part of her liver that doctors needed was smaller than they were hoping for.

To address the situation, caregivers at the nationally ranked Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital pediatric transplant program, came up with a unique alternative solution: paired exchange.

Justin donated part of his liver to Marissa while the smaller part of Annie’s liver went to Elie. Now both children are thriving, and each have a hopeful outlook for a healthy life.

“I was disappointed when I found out I wouldn’t be able to donate to my daughter but when I found out someone else’s daughter needed help I didn’t hesitate because I know what it feels like to be uncertain about your child’s future,” said Tibbs. “Today was incredible because I got to meet the donor who saved our daughter’s life.”

Marissa’s mother, Tara, says her daughter has new lease on life thanks to the unique transplant and paired organ exchange – and is getting back to the things she loves.

“She’s already back kicking a soccer ball and she’s going to be driving on her own soon,” said Tara. “I’m so taken back by the selflessness of Annie and Justin to help give these kids a chance. They could have said “no” and I would have understood but in the end they didn’t.”

Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital pediatric liver transplant program performs about 15 transplants each year. Those recipients have a 90 percent success rate a decade later, one of the best in the nation.

For more information on Intermountain Primary Children’s pediatric transplant program, click here.

About Intermountain Health

Headquartered in Utah with locations in six states and additional operations across the western U.S., Intermountain Health is a nonprofit system of 33 hospitals, over 400 clinics, medical groups with some 4,600 employed physicians and advanced care providers, a health plans division called Select Health with more than one million members, and other health services. Helping people live the healthiest lives possible, Intermountain is committed to improving community health and is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes at sustainable costs. For up-to-date information and announcements, please see the Intermountain Health newsroom at https://news.intermountainhealth.org/.

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