Bernie Kosar Undergoes Liver Transplant: "I'm Out and I'm Feeling Good!"

After undergoing liver transplant surgery this morning, Bernie Kosar says he's "out and feeling good."

Over the past week, the former Browns quarterback has kept followers updated as he underwent multiple surgeries to stop internal bleeding related to his cirrhosis of the liver. A first attempt at a liver transplant ended up a false start after the organ was found to be infected. Last night, Kosar finally received the call he had been waiting for.

“Well, it may not be Victory Monday on the football field, but here we are at 4:23 in the morning, University Hospital, and it’s absolutely Victory Monday for me,” Kosar said in a video post on X. “So looking forward to really, literally, heading on down right now to get that liver transplant. You know, as you get ready for something monumental and transformative like this in your life, you can’t help but be, you know, be a little reflective."

Kosar posted again at 3 p.m. saying the surgery had been completed.

"Hey, I'm out and I'm feeling good and ready to enjoy the rest of the week and the rest of our lives," he said in the video post.

University Hospitals confirmed the procedure with Cleveland Magazine in the following statement:

"Today, University Hospitals completed a liver transplant surgery for our patient, Bernie Kosar. As Northeast Ohio’s hometown healthcare team, it is always an honor to serve patients across our community.  We are thankful to Mr. Kosar for trusting us with his healthcare needs. Our doctors, nurses and caregivers will do everything in our power to support his journey toward recovery. The entire UH team has grown fond of Bernie and we are astonished by the indomitable spirit Browns fans have known and loved for decades."

In July 2024, he shared exclusively with Cleveland Magazine that he needed a liver transplant and that he was facing the early stages of Parkinson’s Disease. Dr. Anthony Post, Kosar's liver doctor, told us then that 98% of patients leave the operating room alive and about 80% live more than five years. Still, Kosar has a long road to recovery. About 30% of patients experience rejection, which is when the body's immune system attacks the foreign organ, and the biggest risk for rejection occurs in the first six months. Medication can manage the risk in all but about 2% of cases.

If anyone can handle the battle, however, it's the Cleveland-tough quarterback.

In 2024, Kosar told us, "that toughness and that resiliency that I learned growing up and playing games in old Municipal Stadium on the lake ... that football has taught me, that some of my old coaches have taught me is really paying dividends now in being able to not quit, not stop and keep going."