Organ Donation News and Research

RSS

Families stop donation of organs from deceased relatives who are registered donors

Hundreds of families across England block the donation of organs from deceased relatives, despite the deceased having chosen to sign the Organ Donation Register.

19 Oct 2017

Donor organs labeled as increased risk less likely to be used by transplant patients

Increasingly, transplant surgeons must initiate a tough conversation: explaining to patients what it means to accept an organ from a person who died from a drug overdose.

5 Oct 2017

Organ donation up by more than half in Ontario since Canada introduced new policy

Since Canada introduced a new organ donation policy in 2006 called “circulatory determination of death” (DCD), Ontario has seen a 57% increase in donation, according to a new study.

25 Sep 2017

Researchers develop potential stem cell treatment for several lung conditions

A team of scientists from the UNC School of Medicine and North Carolina State University has developed promising research towards a possible stem cell treatment for several lung conditions, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and cystic fibrosis -- often-fatal conditions that affect tens of millions of Americans.

3 Aug 2017

Youngest person in U.S. receives full face transplant by Cleveland Clinic team

A team of surgeons and doctors at the Cleveland Clinic made history after operating upon a 21 year old woman for 31 hours to give her a full face transplant. The operation held in May this year was a successful one with the woman receiving a completely new face from a donor.

18 Jul 2017

Researchers aim to develop machine-learning method to better predict risks of organ donation

Organ transplants are a game of odds. Success depends on a number of factors: how old and how healthy the donor is, how old and how healthy the recipient is, how good a biological match can be found, how ready the patient is to receive it.

24 Apr 2017

High-donor-volume hospitals more likely to have improved OTPD rate than low-volume medical centers

Hospitals that manage the highest volume of deceased organ donors are 52 percent more likely to recover an above-average number of transplantable organs per donor compared with low-volume hospitals, according to results from a new study conducted across three U.S. donation regions.

19 Jan 2017

New article highlights success of Spanish system in deceased organ donation

Spain is leading the world in deceased organ donation. A new article published in the American Journal of Transplantation contains important information that can help other countries learn from the success of the Spanish system to help address the worldwide problem of transplant organ shortages.

9 Jan 2017

First-in-human study of cell bandage for common sporting knee injury shows promising results

A 'living bandage' made from stem cells, which could revolutionise the treatment and prognosis of a common sporting knee injury, has been trialled in humans for the first time by scientists at the Universities of Liverpool and Bristol.

17 Dec 2016

BloodTrack Emerge: A new technology that provides access to life-saving products during trauma

The Medical Center of Plano (MCP) is the first hospital in Texas to use innovative technology, BloodTrack Emerge, which acts as a vending machine for blood products in the emergency department.

1 Nov 2016

$Small fraction of film and television productions provide complete, accurate information on brain death$

Small fraction of film and television productions provide complete, accurate information on brain death

Neurologists who examined how brain death and organ donation are portrayed in film and television found that only a small fraction of productions provide the public with a complete and accurate understanding of brain death.

19 Sep 2016

Stranger’s organ donation instigates six-way kidney swap

A stranger began a chain of events that eventually saved the lives of six people in desperate need of new kidneys. Her organ donation triggered a six-way kidney swap at Houston Methodist Hospital in July, the second largest of its kind performed at one institution in Texas.

2 Aug 2016

Innovative organ donation program allows living donors to donate kidney in advance

Gift certificate, layaway plan or voucher. Call it what you want, but an innovative organ donation program initiated at UCLA has started to spread to other transplant programs across the United States.

11 Jul 2016

Researchers receive grant to improve quality of donor limb, tissue for transplant

A Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine faculty member has received $998,500 from the U.S. Department of Defense to develop a new approach to improve the quality and quantity of limbs and tissues obtained from brain dead organ donors.

27 Jun 2016

Eye donations: what stops people? An interview with Rory Passmore

Despite a shortage of corneas for transplant purposes, our new research reveals that eyes are the one body part we are least likely to donate.

27 Jun 2016

Researchers produce insulin-secreting cells from stem cells of diabetic patients

Signaling a potential new approach to treating diabetes, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Harvard University have produced insulin-secreting cells from stem cells derived from patients with type 1 diabetes.

11 May 2016

Study: British adults agree to donate heart, kidney and lungs, but not eyes for transplant

Despite a shortage of corneas for transplant purposes, new research reveals that eyes are the one body part we are least likely to donate.

19 Apr 2016

Scientists demonstrate method for generating eye tissues to restore lost or damaged vision

Scientists have demonstrated a method for generating several key types of eye tissue from human stem cells in a way that mirrors whole eye development.

10 Mar 2016

Freestanding organ recovery facility for brain-dead donors increases organ transplant

Transplant surgeons report that obtaining organs from deceased organ donors costs much less and leads to a higher number of transplantable organs recovered when brain-dead donors are moved from the hospital to an independent, freestanding facility dedicated to organ recovery. Their study is published online as an "article in press" on the Journal of the American College of Surgeons website in advance of print publication later this year.

2 Mar 2016

New clinical manual addresses controversial topic of organ donation after euthanasia

A new practical manual addresses the controversial topic of organ donation after euthanasia, providing guidance to clinicians whose patients have requested euthanasia and the desire to offer their organs to others in need.

24 Feb 2016