By donating your organs and tissue after you die, you can save or improve as many as 75 lives . Many families say that knowing their loved one helped save or improve other lives helped them cope with their loss. It's especially important to consider becoming an organ donor if you belong to an ethnic minority.
What is the most important organ to donate?
- Heart: As the hardest-working muscle in the body, the heart beats 60-80 times every minute and is responsible for pumping blood to every area. ...
- Kidneys: Kidneys are the most needed and most commonly transplanted organ.
Why is organ donation important?
Organ Donation is the gift of an organ to a person who needs a transplant to improve his condition and health status. ... Donated organs give the recipient the opportunity of a longer and better quality of life .
What are the negative effects of organ donation?
Immediate, surgery-related risks of organ donation include pain, infection, hernia, bleeding, blood clots, wound complications and, in rare cases, death . Long-term follow-up information on living-organ donors is limited, and studies are ongoing.
What are the dangers of organ donation?
- Pneumonia – higher risk if you're a smoker.
- Blood clot in your lower leg or lungs.
- Hernia after the surgery.
- Pain from the incision or infection of the incision.
- Change from laparoscopic (key-hole) surgery to open surgery.
- Bleeding may need a blood transfusion.
What disqualifies you from being an organ donor?
Just about anyone, at any age, can become an organ donor. ... Certain conditions, such as having HIV, actively spreading cancer , or severe infection would exclude organ donation. Having a serious condition like cancer, HIV, diabetes, kidney disease, or heart disease can prevent you from donating as a living donor.
Can I donate my heart if I'm still alive?
The heart must be donated by someone who is brain-dead but is still on life support . The donor heart must be in normal condition without disease and must be matched as closely as possible to your blood and /or tissue type to reduce the chance that your body will reject it.
Why you shouldn't be an organ donor?
During a study by the National Institutes of Health, those opposed to organ donation cited reasons such as mistrust of the system and worrying that their organs would go to someone not deserving of them (e.g., a “bad” person or someone whose poor lifestyle choices caused their illness).
What happens to your body if you are an organ donor?
With organ donation, the death of one person can lead to the survival of many others . The donor is only kept alive by a ventilator, which their family may choose to remove them from. ... This person would be considered legally dead when their heart stops beating.
How many live liver donors have died?
“Because I knew that could have been me.” Four living liver donors have died in the United States since 1999, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, including Arnold and another patient who died earlier this year at the Lahey Clinic in Massachusetts.
What can you donate from your body while alive?
As a living donor, you may be able to donate: one of your kidneys , one liver lobe, a lung or part of the lung, part of the pancreas, or part of the intestines.
What are the pros and cons of organ donation?
- You can save a life, possibly multiple lives. You may even save the life of someone you love.
- Your family can find comfort in knowing your organs saved others. ...
- Organ donors and recipients do not have to be an exact match. ...
- Medical research donation can save even more lives.
How does organ donation improve quality of life?
Quality of life: Transplants can greatly improve a recipient's health and quality of life, allowing them to return to normal activities . They can spend more time with family and friends, be more physically active, and pursue their interests more fully.
Does kidney donation shorten your life?
Does living donation affect life expectancy? Living donation does not change life expectancy , and does not appear to increase the risk of kidney failure.
At what age does organ donation stop?
There's no age limit to donation or to signing up. People in their 50s, 60s, 70s, and older have donated and received organs. Learn the facts about donating for people over age 50.
Can family stop organ donation?
One donor can save up to 8 lives through organ donation and save and heal more than 75 lives through tissue donation. ... Just like a will, this decision is legally binding and cannot be overridden by your family; which is why it's so important to discuss donation with your loved ones.
