By M. Dennis Yu, MD, Cardiology
April is National Donate Life Month, which celebrates those who make the life-saving decision to be an organ, eye and tissue donor.
Life-and-death decisions are made every day. But you can make one simple decision today to donate life by registering to be an organ, tissue or bone marrow donor.
More than 120,000 men, women and children need an organ transplant and one person is added to the organ transplant list every 10 minutes, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN).
But those people on the list may not receive one in time: 8,000 people a year die waiting. This means 22 people every day die waiting for an organ transplant.
One organ donor can eight people, and one tissue donor can help more than 75 people.
Tens of thousands of patients undergo organ transplants every year for heart, lungs, liver pancreas, kidneys and intestines. Thousands more receive donations of bone marrow, skin, heart valves, cornea and tissue.
What You Can Do
Registering as an organ, eye and tissue donor is simple: all you need is your driver's license.
In Illinois, you can sign up through the Secretary of State's office by visiting a facility where driver's licenses are issued, on the website, or by calling 800-210-2106.
You may also register at DonateLife.net. Remember to tell your family you have registered so they may support your decision. There are other ways to donate life, such as by donating blood, blood platelets or bone marrow.
Living donors also can help patients who need a kidney or liver transplant. Such transplants use a portion of the healthy donor's liver that will regenerate and heal.
Donation Facts
You can be a donor at any ageCelebrity or financial status are not factors in getting a transplantDonation is possible with many medical conditionsAll major religions approve of organ and tissue donationA national computer system and strict standards are in place to ensure ethical and fair distribution of organsA healthy person can become a living donor or by donating a kidney, or part of their liver, lung, intestine, blood or bone marrow.