More than 100,000 lives saved through organ donation in the UK over last 30 years
This Organ Donation Week (23rd – 29th September) NHS Blood and Transplant is celebrating the fact that more than 100,000 lives have been saved over the last 30 years thanks to people agreeing to donate their organs.
Although organ donation has been saving lives in the UK since the 1950s, the NHS Organ Donor Register was created in 1994 to promote the wider message of organ donation and allow people to record their decision to be a donor.
With the 30th anniversary of the Organ Donor Register this year, people are being urged to register their decision so that more lives can be saved.
Josh's story
Lisa Chapman’s son Josh was one of those who had confirmed his decision by signing the Organ Donor Register. He would have also been celebrating his 30th birthday this year but was tragically killed in a road accident when he was just 24.
Josh, who was a self-employed tiler and a new dad at the time, fell from a moving car and suffered a catastrophic brain injury. He went on to save the lives of six people after his family gave their support for organ donation.
His mum, Lisa, a Business Development Manager from Lichfield in Staffordshire, said:
“The donor team came to us after we’d been given the dreadful diagnosis that Josh wasn’t going to survive. They asked us if we knew that Josh was a registered donor and we didn’t as it’s not something that we, as a family, had had conversations about in any detail.
“My kids always knew I was on the register as I always carried the old kidney donor card and I hope that’s how Josh decided for himself to be a donor. The records showed that Josh had signed up twice, including when he changed his address on his driving licence.
“We just thought 'if that was his decision, who are we to go against it?' This was the last thing that Josh could do that he said he wanted to do. It gives you a glimmer of something positive.”
Last year 4,651 people waiting for an organ transplant had their lives saved by the generosity of the 1,510 deceased organ donors and their families who gave the gift of life. Over half of those had recorded their decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register. However, more people than ever before are on the waiting list for an organ across the UK, with around 11,000 people in need of a lifesaving transplant.
Only around 1% of people who die in the UK every year are usually able to donate their organs after death. Donors are typically those who have died in a hospital intensive care unit or emergency department due to brain injuries, cardiac arrest, or other trauma.
It’s something to focus on and amazing to know of the difference Josh has made.
Lisa added: “Every year Josh’s friends hold a pub crawl on his birthday, the Tour de Chappy, as a way to remember him. He would have been 30 this year so it’s really poignant that it’s also 30 years since the creation of the NHS Organ Donor Register.
“For me, it’s something to focus on and amazing to know of the difference Josh has made, especially for his little girl. Harper-Mae was only six months old when Josh died. She is now 5 years-old and the image of her dad in so many ways. For her to have that legacy of her dad, the fact he has helped six other families remain together, is just massive and we couldn’t be prouder.”
Families are far more likely to support donation when they already know it was what their relative wanted. Almost 90% of people honoured their family members decision last year when they had either proactively registered their decision to donate on the NHS Organ Donor Register or verbally expressed a decision to be a donor.
Vicky's story
We’ve had so much time to do things together, time I wouldn’t have had without organ donation, without my donor giving me my transplant.
Vicky Pettersen is one of the transplant patients alive today thanks to her donor’s family supporting organ donation.
She was first listed for a double lung transplant due to Cystic Fibrosis around the time the Organ Donor Register was created. Her condition improved and she was able to come off the waiting list for five years, receiving her double lung transplant in 1999.
The 53-year-old, from New Marske in North Yorkshire, said: “When I was born and later diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis aged three, not a lot was known and there weren’t a lot of options. I wasn’t expected to live beyond my teens. I am 53 now which is just unbelievable.
“I never thought I’d have 25 years of life because of my donor and their family. My son Antony was five when I was listed. I thought if I got five years with him that’d be absolutely amazing, to make memories and so he would remember me. Seeing him reach ten was a big deal. I’ve lived in milestones, Antony milestones – to reach birthdays, secondary school, etc and I’ve had more than I ever would have imagined. I’ve seen him grow up, go to college, graduate, leave home, get married, become a dad. And my husband Erik and I will have been married 35 years next March, a milestone we never thought we’d see.
“It’s amazing that the Organ Donor Register is 30 years old, and my son Antony has turned 30 this year. Now I am 25 years post lung transplant thanks to my donor, and I am a grandma to Rory who is nearly three.
“Family time is what it is all about, me and Erik have been on our dream holiday to Norway and seen the Northern Lights but actually the day-to-day family times are most important – that’s what I want, to make memories. We’ve had so much time to do things together, time I wouldn’t have had without organ donation, without my donor giving me my transplant.
“I hope I can give hope to others waiting for or receiving a transplant, it can give you a whole life. Not everyone is as lucky as me but look what can happen because of organ donation. I hope people join the register as you cannot just save a life but give someone a whole life and a family a happy future.”
Statements
As part of Organ Donation Week, we are also actively encouraging individuals from Black and Asian communities to consider organ donation as there is a particular need for more donors from minority ethnic backgrounds to help bridge the gap in health inequalities within these communities and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to receive the life-saving treatments they need.
This year, the UK will ‘Go Pink’ once again for Organ Donation Week. Councils, businesses, charities, and famous landmarks up and down the country are turning their lights pink for the week to show their support for the thousands waiting for a transplant. The aim is to turn the country pink, to help people really see the support for organ donation around the country, and prompt people to register their decision to be a donor.
You can register your organ donation decision on our website. You can also register by calling 0300 123 23 23 or using the NHS app in England.