Dying for transplants

LONG LISTS: ABOUT 6 500 WAITING FOR ORGANS TO BECOME AVAILABLE >>→ Shortage of donors is serious problem, says doctor.

- Masoka Dube

Patients on organ donor waiting lists in South Africa's hospitals are at risk of dying because the donation rate is very low.

Recent statistics from the department of health show more than 6 500 people nationwide are on transplant waiting lists.

Gauteng alone has more than 1 100 individuals waiting for kidney transplants.

An organ transplant is a medical procedure in which doctors use another person's body part to replace a patient's failing or damaged organ.

A doctor, who spoke to The Citizen about this issue but preferred not to be named as she is not authorised to speak to the media, said: "The shortage of donated organs is a serious problem because people are dying while on the waiting list.

"Something needs to be done urgently, otherwise the situation will get out of hand, and it will be too late to address it.

"It is frustrating to see your patient struggling, but there is nothing you can do."