Leader: Timeless gift of life

Nov 14 2009 by simon halewood, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

IT IS a sad thought but all too few of us give organ donation more than a passing thought.

It is often only when families become caught up in the harsh reality of one of their loved ones needing a transplant that many find themselves understanding for the first time just how crucial the need for donors is.

It has long been said that the majority of the population would be willing to donate organs after their death, but most simply never get round to joining the register.

Figures today show that 57 people from Kirklees – and 500 across West Yorkshire – are currently waiting for organ transplants.

Across the UK that figure tops 10,000 and the sad reality is that more than a thousand of those people will die before they receive a new organ.

What the NHS Blood and Transport organisation has found is that there is one particular age group that thinks they are simply too old for their organs to be of use.

A study into reasons why people were not on the NHS Organ Donor register showed that the over 55s were twice as likely to say that they did not think they would qualify as suitable donors.

That is a mindset that the Blood and Transplant service is trying to change. Experts say that the idea there is an age limit on becoming an organ donor is a myth.

The sooner that is dispelled the better.

There is no reason why perfectly good organs, which could give another person the gift of life, should continue to go to waste.

Life for some, may indeed begin at 40 – or any other age come to that.