Transplantation Services

Organ Donation Facts

• An average of 68 organ transplants are perfomed every day in the United States.
• A single donor may save or enhance the lives of up to 75 people.
• Approximately 28,000 patients begin new lives each year thanks to organ transplants.
• A kidney, a portion of the liver, and bone marrow can each be transplanted from living donors.
• About three-quarters of all live donors are relatives of their recipient, most commonly a brother or sister.
• The number of unrelated donors has nearly tripled since 1998.
• About 25 percent of all deceased donors in 2002 were at least 50 years old or older. One out of every 12 donors is over the age of 65.
• An average of 18 patients die every day while waiting for a transplant, simply because the organ they needed did not become available in time.
• On average, 106 people are added to the nation's organ transplant waiting list each day -- one every 14 minutes.
• People of all ages and medical histories should consider themselves potential donors. Your medical condition at the time of death will determine what organs and tissue can be donated. Even those who have received an organ transplant themsleves may be an organ donor.
• Almost 100,000 people are currently waiting for an organ transplant in the U.S. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania alone has more than 7,000 residents awaiting transplantation.
• You have the power to save lives and improve the quality of life of those in need of any form of transplant.