In the medical transplant world we call it survival, and it is measured in several different ways, it is compared to national outcomes and transplant site to site outcomes, and it is carefully watched on a local, state and national level. It is a very sensitive question. The reality is that we really don’t know how long and individual will live, but based on PAST patients we have a pretty good idea.Factors, such as age and how sick one is going into the transplant, plays a big role. Keep in mind that for a patient to be listed as a candidate the physician has determined that ALL medical and surgical options have been exhausted. In general, 85 percent to 90 percent of patients survive past one year and 80 percent survive three years. Many patients at Stanford have survived more than 20 years.