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Organ donations from deceased persons fell last year for the first time in more than a decade, leading to fewer kidney transplants, an analysis released on Wednesday showed, pointing to signs of public distrust in the life-saving system.
More than 100,000 people in the United States are on organ transplant lists. The vast majority of them need a kidney, and thousands die every year while waiting.
The nonprofit Kidney Transplant Partnership analyzed federal data and found that 116 fewer kidney transplants were performed last year than in 2024. The tiny difference is a red flag because the analysis found that the decline in kidney transplants was driven by rare but horrifying reports of patients being scheduled for organ transplants despite showing signs of life.
These planned recoveries are halted and the United States is developing additional safeguards for the transplant system, which saves tens of thousands of lives each year. But it has shaken public confidence, prompting some to remove their names from donor lists.
Dr. Andrew Howard, director of the Kidney Transplant Partnership, said last year’s decline in kidney transplants would be even greater unless there was a slight increase in transplants from living donors (about 100 cases), in which healthy people donate one of their kidneys to someone in need. The collaborative advocates for an increase in living donation, which accounts for only a small portion of the approximately 28,000 kidney transplants performed each year.
Except for the raging COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the number of organ transplants has increased year by year. Last year’s decline in the number of deceased donors did not result in a decrease in the overall number of transplants: just over 49,000 transplants compared with 48,150 in 2024. transplant Heart, liver and lung function continue to increase, according to federal data. Howard said this may be due to differences in the way transplant organs are evaluated and allocated.
The Association of Organ Procurement Organizations was not involved in Wednesday’s analysis but expressed alarm and called on its members, hospitals and federal regulators to “come together to restore public trust and strengthen this critical system.”
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