Maisie Almond, 14, was taken to A&E by her parents after she complained of feeling unwell and her eyes turned yellow
Chris Slater, Kirstie McCrum and Miranda Pell
08:51, 10 Mar 2026Updated 12:08, 10 Mar 2026
(Image: MEN Media)
A heartbreaking warning has been issued that further lives could be at risk following the tragic death of a “fit and healthy” teenage girl just one day after a suitable organ donor was identified.
Maisie Almond, from Greater Manchester, passed away aged 14 on October 2, 2024, merely 17 days after initially complaining of feeling unwell. Her parents rushed her to A&E after the teenager’s eyes turned yellow, the Manchester Evening News reports.
The inquest into her death at Stockport Coroner’s Court was told that Maisie was otherwise “fit and healthy” with “no history of underlying health issues” when she presented at Tameside A&E.
Described as a “model pupil” at her secondary school, Maisie fell ill after returning home from one of her two part-time jobs. Her mother noticed her eyes had turned what she described as an “indescribable shade of yellow”.
Following admission, medical staff discovered that her stomach had also turned yellow.
Medical professionals suspected hepatitis and investigated other possible viruses and conditions. Throughout the following 10 days, she was hospitalised on three separate occasions as tests continued and her health deteriorated.
On September 26, she was transferred to the Liver Centre in Leeds and placed on the transplant list the next day. However, a suitable donor was not found until October 1, by which time she had developed cerebral oedema – the medical term for brain swelling – and other organ damage.
This significantly reduced her chances of survival to the point where the transplant did not proceed, the inquest heard.
As she was prepared for surgery, doctors discovered her body wasn’t responding to treatment, making the transplant no longer viable. She tragically passed away the following day.
The inquest, which concluded late last month, saw assistant coroner Adrian Farrow determine that she died ‘from the effects of a rare form of acute liver failure before a suitable donor liver could be found for priority transplantation’.
Following the hearing, Mr Farrow has issued what is known as a Prevention of Future Deaths report. These documents are used by coroners in England and Wales to highlight issues where they believe action is needed to prevent future tragedies.
In his now-public report, Mr Farrow has expressed concern over a ‘national shortage’ of liver donors and policies which he claims have ‘narrowed the pool’ of suitable donors.
The coroner states in his report: “During the inquest, I heard evidence from a consultant paediatric hepatologist that there is a national shortage of donor livers generally and particularly for children in the ‘super urgent’ category. The clinical guidance not to utilise cardiac death donor livers in such cases due to the poor historical outcomes has narrowed the pool of suitable donor livers to those arising from brain deaths.
“Altruistic living liver donations are generally not available for super urgent cases. The evidence I received was that the number of donor livers has reduced by a third and the effect is that whereas, historically, a donor liver could be expected to be made available within 48 hours, the wait has now extended to up to a week.
“That delay gives rise to a clear risk that lives will be lost due to the unavailability of suitable donor organs. In my opinion, there is a risk that future deaths could occur unless action is taken,” he stated in the report, which has been sent to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the NHS Blood and Transplant Service.
In the wake of her passing, Maisie’s parents Kathryn and Stuart described their daughter, who had aspirations of becoming an accountant and had made plans to backpack around the globe with her mates, as someone who was ‘happy and smiling all the time. ‘.
They pledged to ‘keep her memory alive’ and ‘keep her light shining’ and set about fundraising and promoting vital awareness surrounding blood and organ donation.
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