Mantle Suffers Light Rejection of New Liver

Mickey Mantle began a new round Thursday in his fight for life with a transplanted liver--a battle within his body to reject the vital organ implanted two weeks ago.

The “light rejection” was expected and is being treated with high doses of steroids, said Dr. Goran Klintmalm, medical director of the Baylor Institute for Transplant Sciences.

Doctors performed a biopsy of the baseball great’s new liver Wednesday morning after blood tests showed signs of diminished function, Klintmalm said.

“His body has realized that, ‘Gosh, that liver is not my own,’ and the body is responding as if that liver is a large virus--and it’s trying to kill it,” Klintmalm said. “We are able to moderate this response. This is something we expected, it happened, and we are treating it.”

The 63-year-old Hall of Famer is listed in stable condition.

Mantle will continue to receive precautionary chemotherapy as a result of the liver cancer that prompted the June 8 transplant.

Such organ rejection is “common,” and occurs in about two-thirds of all liver transplants, Klintmalm said. Only about 1% require a second transplant.