Ahead of Organ Donor Awareness Week, which runs from May 10-17, the Irish Kidney Association put out a call for personal stories to feature in its media campaign aimed at improving the availability of organs for people awaiting a transplant.¹ The association is particularly interested in “stories from individuals who have been diagnosed with kidney disease, have received an organ transplant, are a living donor or have made the selfless decision to donate a loved one’s organs”. 

Surgeons have been transplanting organs between patients for quite some time. The first thyroid tissue transplant was performed in 1883 by Swiss surgeon and later Nobel laureate Theodor Kocher. The first human corneal transplant was performed by Eduard Zirm in the Czech Republic in 1905. The first successful kidney transplant was between identical twins in December 1954, performed in Boston by the surgeon Joseph Murray who was also awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his work. The first successful human lung transplant was performed in June 1963 by James Hardy in Jackson, Mississippi, while Thomas Starzl of Denver, Colorado attempted a human liver transplant the same year but was ultimately unsuccessful until 1967. Then, in December 1967, South African heart surgeon Dr Christiaan Bernhard performed the world’s first human heart transplant in Cape Town. Almost 8,000 organ transplants have taken place in Ireland since the first kidney transplant here in 1963.

According to the HSE’s Organ Donation Transplant Ireland Office (ODTI), there were some 263 organ transplants in Ireland in 2024.² This number comprised 175 kidneys, 53 livers, 16 hearts, 15 lungs and four pancreases. There were 114 donors of whom 30 were living donors. Unfortunately, the demand for organs far exceeds supply. Indeed, the ODTI is keen to encourage a general conversation about organ donation, noting that most organ donations can only proceed when somebody dies. Reasons for non-donation as reported in 2023 by the National Office of Clinical Audit, include lack of family consent. Of 145 patients eligible for organ donation in the audit, families were approached in 112 cases and gave their consent in just 73 of those. In the remainder, families were divided in their opinion, unsure about the wishes of the recently-deceased, felt their loved one had been through enough, or were uncomfortable with the organ donation process.

HSE clinical lead for organ donation Dr Catherine Motherway has urged people to discuss with their families their willingness to donate their organs in the event of their death.³ Now there is new legislation afoot in the form of the Human Tissue Act 2024, which “will introduce ‘deemed consent’ with the option for people to opt-out if they would prefer not to donate”, according to former Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly. “The Act will expand pathways for living and altruistic organ donations”, he added, which “will help increase the donor pool in Ireland, while always fully respecting the wishes of people and their families.” He was keen to stress that families would continue to be consulted ahead of donation, hence the importance of people taking the time to talk to their relatives about organ donation and to make their intentions known. As Mr Donnelly put it: “Having that conversation now can give your loved ones clarity and peace of mind should they find themselves faced with the decision to donate.” 

At any given time, there are between 500 and 600 people on transplant waiting lists. With Organ Donor Awareness Week upon us, perhaps it behoves us all to have that conversation and leave no room for doubt. It could mean the gift of life for someone else. 

References

1. https://ika.ie/donorweek/Irish Kidney Association
2. https://about.hse.ie/news/263-organ-transplants-as-a-result-of-organ-donations-in-ireland-in-2024/
3. www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41543167.html