Kidney Donation Statistics
Kidney donation is becoming increasingly important as more and more people need kidneys. Thankfully, this is a life-giving donation that can use living donors. But how common is the donation process? These statistics shed some light on the realities of kidney transplants in the United States.
Need for Kidney Donors Continues Growing
These statistics show how important living donors and the paired donation program are in the kidney donation process:
- Each month, 3,000 new kidney patients are added to the waiting list.
- That’s an average of one person every 14 minutes.
- Each day, 13 people die waiting for a kidney transplant.
- Each year, around 3,700 people on the wait list become too sick to receive a kidney.
Long Wait Lists Common
Kidney patients need donors that are a perfect kidney match, and this leads to long wait times. According to the National Kidney Foundation:
- There are currently 100,791 kidney transplant patients waiting for kidneys.
- In total, 121,678 people need organ transplants.
- Kidney transplants are the most commonly needed organ donation.
- The average wait time for kidney patients is 3.6 years.
- There are around 17,000 kidney donations in the United States each year.
- Only around 5,500 of those came from living donors.
The Anatomy of a Kidney Donor
Most healthy adults can be kidney donors, but not all are willing. What does a kidney donor typically look like? Here’s the breakdown:
- The majority of living donors are between the ages of 35 and 49.
- Females are more likely to donate than males.
- The majority of donors are Caucasian.
- Non-related donors are the most common type of donor, followed by full siblings.
The Anatomy of a Recipient
What does the average kidney recipient look like? Here’s a breakdown:
- The majority of recipients are between the ages of 50 and 64.
- The 35 to 49 age demographic is a close second.
- More men need kidneys than women.
- Caucasians are more likely to need a kidney than other ethnicities.
Do you want to help lower these numbers? Become a living donor through the kidney exchange process with help from the Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation today.
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