This week (20th to 26th September 2021) is Organ Donation Week, when the British Liver Trust will be celebrating the lifesaving gift of organ donation by sharing liver transplant patients’ stories.
There are usually around 450 people on the liver transplant waiting list in the UK at any one time. Sadly, around one in ten people die or have to be removed from the waiting list before they receive a transplant because their condition has deteriorated.
Opt-out or opt-in?
All adults in England, Wales and Scotland are considered as willing to donate when they die, unless they have recorded a decision not to donate, are in one of the excluded groups or have told their family they don’t wish to donate. They still have a choice whether they want to be an organ donor and their families will still be involved before organ donation goes ahead.
In Northern Ireland the opt-in system remains in place.
However, it’s still important to register or share your decision with your family and friends too, to give them the certainty to support your decision at a difficult time. You could save or transform up to nine people’s lives by donating your organs when you die and help even more people by donating tissue, such as your heart valves, skin, bone, tendons and corneas.
How to register your decision
Visit organdonation.nhs.uk to register your decision about organ transplantation and find out more.
If you've had a liver transplant, you can leave a dedication to your donor on our website. Honour a Donor is a place to remember and thank your, or your loved one's, organ donors.
We will be sharing our supporters' liver transplant stories on social media throughout the week and into the future. Thank you to everyone who has kindly shared their personal stories with us.
