About organ donation

Organ donation is the process of giving an organ or a part of an organ for the purpose of transplantation into another person.

Organ donation can occur with:

• a deceased donor, who can give kidneys, pancreas, liver, lungs, heart, intestinal organs
• a living donor, who can give a kidney, or a portion of the liver, lung, intestine, or pancreas

Matching donor organs with transplant candidates

When a deceased organ donor is identified, a transplant coordinator from an organ procurement organization accesses the UNet system and enters necessary medical information about the donor. The system uses this information to match the medical characteristics of the candidates waiting against those of the donor. The system then generates a ranked list of patients who are suitable to receive each organ. This list is called a "match run." Factors affecting ranking may include:

• tissue match
• blood type
• length of time on the waiting list
• immune status
• distance between the potential recipient and the donor
• degree of medical urgency (for heart, liver, lung and intestines)

Learn more about how organs are matched with transplant candidates now »