- There is a critical shortage of organs in this country. More than 110,000 individuals currently await a lifesaving transplant in the United States. Of
those, more than 10,000 are Texans.
- Last year alone, more than 6,300 people died awaiting an organ transplant;
that’s 18 people who die daily because an organ did not become available
- A person is added to the national organ transplant waiting list in the United
States every 11 minutes.
- The generosity of an individual donor can save up to eight lives through
organ donation and enhance another 50 through tissue donation.
- In 2010, more than 28,663 organ transplants were performed in the United
States. Organs used for transplant include kidneys, heart, lungs, liver,
pancreas and small bowels.
- Close to one million tissue transplants are performed annually. Tissue
includes skin, bone, heart valves, veins and corneas. Skin is used to treat
burn patients and individuals with cancer; bone can be used to treat
orthopedic injuries and cancer patients; corneas can enhance and restore
- The Glenda Dawson Donate Life – Texas Registry is the official state organ,
tissue and eye donor registry. Signing the registry is a legally-binding, first-person
consent to be an organ and tissue donor upon a person’s death.
Register to become a donor at www.donatelifetexas.org or the companion
Download the LifeGift Classroom Guide about Organ and Tissue Donation