Right now, there are 116,000 men, women, and children waiting on the national transplant list for an organ.
There are over 33,000 organ transplants performed a year.
Every day 20 people die waiting for organ transplants.
In the United States, 95% of adults support organ donation, but only 54% sign up to be donors.
The organs most people are waiting for include kidney (82%), liver (12%), heart (3%), and lung (1.2%). Other types of organ donations include pancreas, intestines, and combination transplants.
There is new technology being developed to help patients with organ failure survive. There are new machines that help patients stay alive until they can get an organ. There are scientists doing research with stem cells that may help repair damaged organs in the future. There is even research on transplanting organs from other animals such as pigs into humans (this is already done with heart valves from pigs).
You can sign up to be an organ donor at the DMV. It is also helpful to be sure your family knows that you would want your organs donated.
Healthfacts.blog 