4 misconceptions about organ and tissue donation
Published on 15 June 2021
June 22, 2021 is the National Day of Reflection on Organ Donation and Transplantation and Recognition of Donors. Do you know that a donor saves an average of 3 lives? Or that a person is more likely one day to need a transplant than to be a donor?
Only 47% of French people claim to be well informed[1] about organ donation. It is always useful to deconstruct preconceived ideas on this subject. This is also the aim of the dondorganes.fr website, which answers all the questions the public may have.
What does the law say? Is the family consulted about the deceased's position on organ donation?
Since 1976, French law has stipulated that we are all potential organ donors when we die, unless we have expressed our refusal to donate during our lifetime. To find out whether such a refusal has been expressed by the deceased, the medical team first checks whether the deceased is registered on the national refusal register. If the deceased is not on it, the medical team questions his or her family to find out whether their loved one had expressed, during his or her lifetime, his or her opposition in writing or orally. Moreover, since 2018, the Agence de la biomédecine has chosen to stop distributing the organ donor card, which could have misled people about this law. Yet nearly 18%1 of French people think it's still necessary. The green ribbon now symbolizes organ and tissue donation. It is also a sign of gratitude to all organ and tissue donors, and a sign of hope for patients awaiting transplants.
Can organ donation save lives even after a certain age?
A 96-year-old donor gave his liver in 2019. Is this exceptional? Not really, 18 kidney donors were over 90 between 2011 and 2020. In fact, there are no age-related contraindications to donation. It's the condition of the organs that counts, and this depends very much on the conditions in which the person died and their lifestyle. Donors aged over 65 accounted for 40% of all donors in 2020. The average age of donors is rising (42 in 2000, 57 in 2020), notably because older people can have access to transplants: the average age of transplant recipients was 44 in 2000, rising to 51 in 2020.
How can we ensure that the body is respected and returned to the family?
Organ and tissue removal is a surgical procedure performed with the same care as for a living person. Incisions are closed and covered with dressings, and if necessary, artificial prostheses are fitted to ensure that the body's appearance remains unchanged. Once the operation has been completed, the body is dressed and returned to the family, who can arrange the funeral of their choice. The cost of restoring the body is borne by the establishment that took care of the removal. On the other hand, the family is responsible for funeral and body conservation care.
Does tissue donation also save lives?
A deceased person can also donate tissue: corneas (thin membranes on the surface of the eyes), bones, arteries, veins, skin, heart valves, tendons... These tissue transplants can save the lives of burn victims (skin transplants), restore sight to the visually impaired (corneal transplants), reconstruct the anatomy enabling the patient to walk again (bone transplants), replace an infected aorta prosthesis (artery transplants). Tissue donation is just as important as organ donation. Let's not forget it!
PRPA contacts for Agence de la biomédecine Elisa Ohnheiser: elisa.ohnheiser@prpa.fr / 06 80 28 66 72 Danielle Maloubier: danielle.maloubier@prpa.fr / 06 24 26 57 90