In Germany, numerous individuals are hoping for a potentially lifesaving donor organ.
The need for life-saving organ donations in Germany: Thousands of people are waiting, sometimes for years, in hopes of receiving one. But sadly, many will never get a donor organ, as the demand is too great and the supply too small. The National Day of Organ Donation aims to raise awareness about this on Saturday, encouraging individuals to educate themselves and make a decision about donating.
Which organs can be donated? The options are vast: kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas, and small intestine. Moreover, tissues like corneas or bone can be transplanted. However, it's important to note that some organs might not be suitable for donation.
How many people are in dire need of a donor organ? The German Foundation for Organ Transplantation (DSO) has stated that close to 8,400 seriously ill individuals are currently awaiting an organ. A tragic reality for hundreds is that their health declines so severely they are no longer suitable for a transplant or they pass away before receiving their donation because, unfortunately, a compatible organ wasn't found in time. A heart-wrenching statistic shows that 72 heart patients, 37 lung patients, 289 kidney patients, and 251 liver patients died last year while on the waiting list.
Interestingly, 6,500 people with kidney disease are considered suitable for a kidney transplant, which is three times the number of actual kidney transplants conducted in Germany during the previous year. This highlights the ever-present problem of organ donation shortage. In fact, there are over a hundred thousand patients relying solely on dialysis for their survival. Due to this, some candidates for postmortem organ transplants are unable to even make it onto the waiting list.
