  We propose a simple dissipative system with purely cubic defocusing
nonlinearity and nonuniform linear gain that can support stable localized
dissipative vortex solitons with high topological charges without the
utilization of competing nonlinearities and nonlinear gain or losses.
Localization of such solitons is achieved due to an intriguing mechanism when
defocusing nonlinearity stimulates energy flow from the ring-like region with
linear gain to the periphery of the medium where energy is absorbed due to
linear background losses. Vortex solitons bifurcate from linear gain-guided
vortical modes with eigenvalues depending on topological charges that become
purely real only at specific gain amplitudes. Increasing gain amplitude leads
to transverse expansion of vortex solitons, but simultaneously it usually also
leads to stability enhancement. Increasing background losses allows creation of
stable vortex solitons with high topological charges that are usually prone to
instabilities in conservative and dissipative systems. Propagation of the
perturbed unstable vortex solitons in this system reveals unusual dynamical
regimes, when instead of decay or breakup, the initial state transforms into
stable vortex soliton with lower or sometimes even with higher topological
charge. Our results suggest an efficient mechanism for the formation of
nonlinear excited vortex-carrying states with suppressed destructive azimuthal
modulational instabilities in a simple setting relevant to a wide class of
systems, including polaritonic systems, structured microcavities, and lasers.
