U.S. on pace to top 40,000 transplants in a single year for first time
Richmond, VA
|
August 09, 2021 01:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time
In just the first half of 2021, 21,061 organ transplants have been performed in the U.S. according to data from United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which serves as the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network under federal contract.
Organ donation from deceased donors is up 15% over last year. There were 900 more deceased donors -- people who provided one or more organs to save and enhance the lives of others -- between January 1 and June 30 of 2021 than there were during the same period in 2020. The drop in donors caused by the pandemic beginning in the middle of March last year was offset enough by high numbers early in the year that there were still 242 more donors in the first half of 2020 than in the first half of 2019.
Organ transplants from deceased donors are also up -- by 11%. A total of 17,821 deceased donor transplants were performed in the U.S. in the first half of 2021 compared to 15,933 in the first six months of last year. 2020 marked the 10th consecutive record breaking year for organ donation from deceased donors and the 8th in a row for deceased donor transplants.
“This significant increase in donation and transplantation as we continue to fight COVID as a nation is a bright spot that inspires hope. At the same time it’s not enough because so many patients continue to wait. We must renew our commitment to work together to improve the best transplant systemin the world by continuing to innovate and promote donation,” said Matthew Cooper, M.D., president of the UNOS Board of Directors. “In doing so we honor the gift of every donor and donor family whose lifesaving decisions make transplantation possible.”
As of today, 106,602 men, women and children are on the waiting list for a transplant, which is the lowest it has been since 2009. The list topped 124,000 at its height in 2014.
“Everyone of us has the potential to save multiple lives by registering to be an organ, tissue and eye donor,” Cooper said.
Learn more about organ donation and transplantation and how to register to be a donor at www.unos.org.
Dr. Cooper is a transplant surgeon and the director of kidney and pancreas transplantation at MedStar Georgetown Transplant Institute at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.
###
About United Network for Organ Sharing
United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) is a non-profit, charitable organization that serves as the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) under contract with the federal government. The OPTN helps create and define organ allocation and distribution policies that make the best use of donated organs. This process involves continuously evaluating new advances and discoveries so policies can be adapted to best serve patients waiting for transplants. All transplant programs and organ procurement organizations throughout the country are OPTN members and are obligated to follow the policies the OPTN creates for allocating organs.
Contact Details
United Network for Organ Sharing
Anne Paschke
+1 804-782-4730
Company Website
