Why should minorities be particularly concerned about organ donation?
Some diseases of the kidney, heart, lung, pancreas and liver are found more frequently in racial and ethnic minority populations than in the general population. For example, African Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders and Hispanics are three times more likely to suffer from kidney disease than Whites. Native Americans are four times more likely than Whites to suffer from diabetes. Some of these diseases are best treated through transplantation; others can only be treated through transplantation. Successful transplantation is often enhanced by the matching of organs between members of the same ethnic and racial group. For example, an African American patient is often less likely to reject a kidney if it is donated by an individual who is genetically similar. Generally, people are genetically more similar to people of their race than to people of other races. A shortage of organs donated by minorities can contribute to death and longer waiting periods for transplants for minorities.
»Back to top Minorities suffer End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), a very serious and life threatening kdney disease, much more frequently than do whites. For example, from 1992 to 1995 African Americans were more than four times more likely than whites to develop ESRD; Native Americans were more than three times as likely; and Asian Americans were almost twice as likely to suffer from the disease. ESRD is treatable with dialysis, however, dialysis is costly and can result in a poor quality of life for the patient. The preferred treatment of ESRD is kidney transplantation. Transplantation offers the patient “Freedom” from dialysis to lead a more normal lifestyle and can successfully cure ESRD for many years. As with any transplant procedures, it is very important to assure a close match between donor and recipient blood types and genetic make-up. Members of different racial and ethnic groups are usually more genetically similar to members of their own group than they are to others. It is i
Some diseases of the kidney, heart, lung, pancreas and liver are found more frequently in racial and ethnic minority populations than in the general population. Successful transplantation often is enhanced by the matching of organs between members of the same ethnic and racial group. Are there any costs to my family for donation? The donor’s family does NOT pay for the cost of the organ donation. All costs related to donation of organs and tissues are paid by the recipient, usually through insurance, Medicare or Medicaid. Can I sell my organs? No! The National Organ Transplant Act (Public Law 98-507) makes it ILLEGAL to sell human organs and tissues. Violators are subject to fines and imprisonment. Among the reasons for this rule is the concern of Congress that buying and selling of organs might lead to inequitable access to donor organs with the wealthy having an unfair advantage. How are organs distributed? Patients are matched to organs based on a number of factors including blood a
Minorities suffer end-stage renal disease (ESRD), a very serious life-threatening kidney disease, much more frequently than do whites. Asian Americans are three times more likely than whites to develop ESRD; Hispanics are three times as likely; and blacks are twice as likely as whites to develop ESRD. ESRD is treatable with dialysis but dialysis can result in a poor quality of life for the patient. The preferred treatment of ESRD is kidney transplantation. Transplantation offers the patient freedom from dialysis to lead a more normal life and can successfully cure ESRD for many years. As with any transplant procedures, it is very important to assure a close match between donor and recipient blood types and genetic make-up. Members of different racial and ethnic groups are usually more genetically similar to members of their own group than they are to others. (For example, blacks are usually more genetically similar to other blacks than they are to whites.) It is important, therefore, t
A. Some diseases of the kidney, heart, lung, pancreas and liver are found more frequently in racial and ethnic minority populations than in the general population. For example, African Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders and Hispanics are three times more likely to suffer from end-stage renal disease than people of European decent. Native Americans are four times more likely than people of European decent to suffer from diabetes. Some of these diseases are best treated through transplantation; others can ONLY be treated through transplantation. Successful transplantation often is enhanced by the matching of organs between members of the same ethnic and racial group. For example, a patient is less likely to reject a kidney if it is donated by an individual who is genetically similar. Generally, people are genetically more similar to people of their own ethnicity or race than to people of other races.
