Eleven people became lifesaving and life improving organ donors on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, 11 people became organ donors after death, enabling up to 35 lifesaving or life improving organ transplants, NHS Blood and Transplant figures show.

NHSBT has released the figures to highlight how incredibly generous families choose to support donation and save lives every day of the year.

The 35 organs sent for transplant included kidneys, livers, pancreas, lungs, bowels and a heart.

Donations are incredibly important all year around as the waiting list for a transplant is the highest it has been in a decade. As of 27 December 2024, there are 8,020 people in the UK actively waiting for that lifesaving opportunity.

NHS Blood and Transplant, which provides the organ donation system for the NHS across the UK, is campaigning for donation to reduce the waiting list and save more lives.

More than 100,000 transplants have taken place in the last 30 years since the creation of the NHS Organ Donor Register in 1994. Across the UK, there are 28.1 million people opted-in to the NHS Organ Donor Register.

To register your organ donation decision, visit our website, call 0300 123 23 23 or use the NHS app in England.

Statements

Statement from Anthony Clarkson, Director of Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation for NHS Blood and Transplant

Anthony Clarkson, Director of Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation for NHS Blood and Transplant, said:

“Organ donors give the ultimate gift of life to people they will never know. This year, like every year, families supported organ donation even after a bereavement at Christmas, choosing to save and improve lives.

“It is incredibly important that we recognise the difference this makes to the lives of recipients. Without donation, there is no transplantation. There will be people starting a new life in the New Year thanks to the generosity of these donors and their loved ones.

“No-one wants to think about death but the reality is it can happen at any time of year. You can make things easier for your family by signing the NHS Organ Donor Register and telling them you want to be a donor.”