25,000 People in Iran Need Organ Transplants

The head of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network at the Ministry of Health, Treatment, and Medical Education stated that over 25,000 people in Iran are in need of organ transplants. According to Katayoun Najafi-Zadeh, on Tuesday (November 23), during a meeting of the Supreme Council of Organ Transplants in Gilan, she reported that 7 to 10 people die daily in the country due to the lack of available transplant organs. Najafi-Zadeh mentioned that currently only one-fourth of the organs from those who suffer brain death in Iran are used for transplantation. She stated, 'If the number of brain death cases utilized doubles, we will not have patients on the waiting list.' This official reported the annual number of brain deaths in Iran to be between 5,000 and 8,000, and noted that according to global statistics, 50% of these deaths should result in organ transplants. Iran, according to this official, should have between 2,500 to 4,000 organ donations annually, while only 808 organ donations occurred last year. Najafi-Zadeh added that if 'families of brain-dead patients consent to organ donation for needy patients, we will no longer worry about the number of dialysis machines.' On September 25 of this year, Health Minister Hassan Hashemi announced that organ transplants for liver, kidney, lung, pancreas, heart, and intestine are performed in Iran. Hashemi also mentioned that so far, 43,000 kidney transplants, 4,000 liver transplants, and 800 heart transplants have been performed in the country. According to the Health Minister, about 5,000 eye transplants are performed annually in Iran. Hashemi also referred to the phenomenon of kidney selling in Iran, describing it as a 'disgraceful' act. For years in Iran, it has been possible to purchase one of the kidneys from living donors for a sum that is usually equivalent to several thousand dollars. Kidney transplant surgery began in Iran in 1967, but after the revolution, the number of surgeries decreased due to foreign sanctions. According to government statistics, currently, about 1,500 people receive kidneys from living donors each year.