By Staff
From special reports
April 1, 2001
JACKSON The number of Americans waiting for an organ transplant in the United States is growing at an alarming rate, totaling more than 75,000 patients in early 2001.
Because of the increase in demand, the National Kidney Foundation of Mississippi is asking all Mississippians to take action by getting the facts about organ donation and signing an organ donor card during National Organ and Tissue Donor Awareness Week, April 15-22.
Of these 75,000 patients, only one out of three will receive a transplant because of the shortage of donors.
But signing a donor card is not enough, she said.
As the list of patients waiting for an organ transplant increases, so does the success rate of transplant procedures. Due to the advances in surgical techniques and organ preservation, the patient survival rate for a kidney transplant was more than 94 percent in 2000. The rate has allowed organ recipients to go on to lead healthy, long-lasting lives, Mooty said.
The National Kidney Foundation of Mississippi is committed to the goal of increasing the availability of all organs for transplantation. For more information and a donor card, call the Mississippi Chapter at (601) 981-3611.