The June 7 Herald article about Mary Swanson brought to life the great need for organ donors. In the United States there are currently more than 300,000 people with end-stage kidney disease on kidney dialysis, with 62,000 of these people on the kidney transplant waiting list.
Living kidney donation has helped to provide people with new life since its inception in 1954.
Since 1988, when the United Network for Organ Sharing began a national database for transplants, more than 68,000 people have donated a kidney. In the past, most living kidney transplants were between first-degree relatives. Now the increase in transplants between nonrelated individuals accounts for up to 25 percent of donated kidneys.
In 1968, Dr. Thomas Marchioro performed the first kidney transplant in the state at the University of Washington. The first altruistic transplant (stranger donating to stranger) was performed at the UW in July 1998. Since then, UW Medical Center and Swedish Hospital both have had active altruistic donor programs.
The living donor is evaluated very rigorously and only those who are healthy are allowed to proceed. Only those who voluntarily step forward to donate are evaluated. Unfortunately, not all individuals who want to donate a kidney to a specific person can do so, due to tissue incompatibility.
We need to exercise caution when discussing donation by prisoners as suggested by Swanson. The ethical issues of taking organ donations from people in disadvantaged situations require serious consideration.
Deceased and living donors provide the gift of life for patients with organ failure. We should respect donors for their contribution to society, just as any national hero would be honored. Without these champions, people with serious organ disease would have much less hope.
CONNIE L. DAVIS, M.D.
CHRISTIAN S. KUHR, M.D.
ELIZABETH KENDRICK, M.D.
KAMI SNEDDON, R.N., CCTC
U W Medical Center
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