There is a desperate need for donated organs for transplantation. At any moment,
hundreds of people are waiting for kidneys, pancreases, livers, corneas, hearts,
and lungs. Cadaveric donation (the recycling of usable organs from the dead)
allows one donor to help many recipients, and has been the rule; but, there
has been a steady increase in organ donation from the living.
In 2001, the number of living donors increased by 13.4 percent, atop a 16.5 percent rise in 2000. However, donations from the dead only rose by 1.6 percent. Last year, there were 6081 cadaveric donors, and 6485 living donors. It is true that one cadaveric donor gives far more (three out of every four donated organs are still cadaveric); but this is the first time living donors outnumbered the dead.
Most living donors donated a kidney. We're born with two, and can do perfectly well with only one. As the surgery gets safer and less invasive, immunosuppressive medications get better, and the need for close genetic match diminishes (you don't need a twin anymore!), healthy folks are choosing to donate to spouses, friends, even employers.
There are risks (as there are with any surgery); but living organ donation is a new option for folks trying to help keep friends and family members alive—and PLEASE consider donating your organs, should anything happen to you.
For more information, see this government Web site: www.organdonor.gov,
or call the National Kidney Foundation; telephone: 1-800-622-9010. A more complete
list of resources is published at the end of Ed Bryant's article: "Kidney
Disease: Prevention, Dialysis or Transplantation," in this issue.