Sahil Gupta reflects on winning the Calne-Williams Medal.

When I stood at the podium during the Calne-Williams Medal session at BTS 2025, I was not just presenting slides—I was carrying a story of meticulous research, mentorship, and a passion to improve lives both in the UK and back home in India.

The medal might bear the names of legends, but in that moment, it felt like a shared achievement—with my mentors, my patients, and the countless silent contributors behind every data point.

My winning research focused on a question that sounds deceptively simple: Which is better for liver graft preservation—UW (University of Wisconsin) solution or HTK (Histidine-Tryptophan-Ketoglutarate)? But the implications of this question are anything but trivial. Organ preservation is the quiet hero of transplantation. It is not glamorous, but it decides whether a graft thrives or fails. Choosing the optimal perfusion fluid is a clinical decision with national consequences.

The Study:

HTK is associated with higher post-reperfusion syndrome (PRS) in deceased donor liver transplant: Time for a global rethink?

We conducted a multicentre retrospective analysis comparing outcomes of liver grafts perfused with UW and HTK solutions. This was not just a statistical arm-wrestle between two fluids; it was an investigation into early allograft dysfunction, and post-transplant complications across varied clinical scenarios. The results were striking – there was a two-fold higher rate of severe PRS in HTK group. However, there was no difference in primary non-function and early allograft dysfunction, however significantly prolonged hospital stay was observed among HTK group as compared to UW group. Our data made a compelling case for UW as the standard fluid for liver preservation.

Our findings contributed directly to a shift in UK practice, solidifying UW’s role as the preferred solution for liver transplantation. As a clinician-researcher, few things are more fulfilling than seeing data translated into decisions.

The People Behind the Medal

This journey was not walked alone. I owe immense gratitude to Professor Krish Menon and Mr Abdul Hakeem – two individuals whose mentorship was equal parts academic rigour and quiet encouragement. They saw potential, asked the tough questions, and helped me shape a dataset into a story worth telling. I also thank the liver transplant teams across centres who supported the study and, of course, the BTS for fostering a platform where young clinicians are heard—and celebrated.

Preparing for the Calne-Williams Medal session was a test of more than just scientific acumen. It was about clarity, confidence, and connection. There is an art to taking dense clinical research and making it resonate with an audience of seasoned surgeons, hepatologists, and transplant nurses. I practised. I timed myself. I even trialled jokes that did not land. But the support I received throughout made every minute worth it.

Looking Ahead: Back to Roots, Forward with Purpose

Winning the medal has been more than a professional milestone—it has been a call to action. I trained in the UK to learn from a system that marries clinical excellence with structured, evidence-based practice. Now, I feel a deep responsibility to take that knowledge back to India and help build capacity where it’s needed most.

My goal is to contribute to developing a deceased donor liver transplant (DDLT) program within a public hospital setting in India. The challenges are immense—resource constraints, public awareness, infrastructure—but so is the potential. Every protocol, every lesson, every mentor’s word will travel with me as I try to build bridges between what I have learned and what I hope to establish.

In Closing

Winning the Calne-Williams Medal was an incredible honour—but it is also a reminder that impactful research does not end with a publication or a trophy. It begins there. Whether in a high-tech UK transplant centre or a resource-limited public hospital in India, the principles remain the same: evidence matters, mentorship matters, and above all, patients matter.

To the BTS community: thank you for the platform, the recognition, and the inspiration. I hope to return—not just with more research—but with stories of transformation, and perhaps one day, of a thriving DDLT program in India inspired by what began in a lecture hall in the UK.