• Facebook Helping Find Organ Donors

     Email Print
    • 3rd Jan 2012

    • Early on when Facebook was created it was used to find old friends and stay in contact with people we care but didn’t necessarily have time to call or meet. Nowadays it is used to save people’s lives. Social media have expanded their role and now it goes beyond imagination. Patients waiting for organ transplant now turn toward Facebook in order to increase their pool of potential organ donors. Most of the living donors are giving one of their kidneys.

      Read More


  • The Fastest Way to Get a Kidney Transplant.

     Email Print
    • 28th Dec 2011

    • Have you ever heard of a paired exchange?  It may also be known as a kidney swap.  The whole process is fairly easy to understand and allows patients to receive a kidney transplant within a year instead of waiting the traditional 2 to 4 years. First of all, the patient in need of a new kidney should have a family member or somebody willing to give his organ directly to him.  It is called a living donor.  A perfect match

      Read More


  • Facts about Organ Donation

     Email Print
    • 7th Sep 2011

    • Becoming an organ donor is the single best action someone can take to be remembered after passing.  In the United States about 1 person out of 4 is a registered organ donor with their state.  In reality, more people may be willing to sign that card but they don’t do it due to a lack of time, motivation or whatever else.  Even if they do, sometimes they don’t talk about it to their family so when time comes to donate

      Read More


  • What is it the age limit for organ transplant?

     Email Print
    • 23rd Aug 2011

    • If I was asked that question 10-15 years ago the answer would have been different than today.   It was safe to say that most transplant center did not do any transplantation on patients older than 60 years old.  These days you have a chance to become an organ recipient as old as 70 years and even a little more depending on the hospital you choose. Usually, for younger patients, it is almost a no brainer to be accepted by a

      Read More


  • Do I need to be rich to qualify for organ transplant?

     Email Print
    • 22nd Aug 2011

    • A lot of people I talk to think you need to be at least in the middle class with private insurance to qualify for organ transplant. This is a myth. Over 80% of the transplant recipients have Medicare or Medicaid as a primary insurance and have no job and not much money. As a matter of fact, a transplant center that does not have a contract with Medicare for organ transplant has no chance of running a big program. Medicare

      Read More


  • Michigan Increases its Organ Donor Pool by a Simple Action

     Email Print
    • 13th Jul 2011

    • Just by asking its residents at government branch offices, Michigan has increased its number of registration on the donor registry by 25% month over month.  The increase was seen comparing June 2010 and this year.  Secretary of State Ruth Johnson attributes this jump because of her new policy of simply asking people when they show up in a government office.  The State of Michigan was almost dead last in the country for its participation on the donor registry.  It sure

      Read More


  • Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Organ Donation

     Email Print
    • 7th Jul 2011

    • 1)      Will the donor family have to pay the cost for the organs to be donated? There is no charge for the donor family during an organ donation process.  All costs are covered by the organ procurement organization (OPO).  The OPO will get pay by charging the transplant centers who recover the organs.  The family will only have to pay the cost of the funeral.   2)       Will it be possible to have an open casket at my funeral?  

      Read More


  • Obesity Will Kill you Sooner after Organ Transplant

     Email Print
    • 15th Jun 2011

    • Obesity has become an epidemic in the US during the last decades and transplant patients are not immune from that issue.  This major health problem shortens the life of many Americans (Canadians too) due to its complications.  If you are an organ transplant patient, you are playing with fire.  According to the World Health Organization (WHO) website, overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health.  More precisely overweight is described as having a

      Read More


  • Organ Transplantation Breakthrough: How About Uterine Transplant?

     Email Print
    • 14th Jun 2011

    • Within the last several years we have seen major breakthrough in organ transplantation: multi-organ transplant, hair transplant, bone marrow transplant and even face and hand transplant.  Now a British surgeon wants to be the first in the world to successfully perform a uterine transplant from a mother to her daughter, the Telegraph reports.   I said to successfully perform because it has been tried only once on a human before and it was in 2000 in Saudi Arabia.  The uterus had

      Read More


  • Tax Credit for Organ Donation

     Email Print
    • 14th Jun 2011

    • The state of Pennsylvania voted a law for tax credit for employers who allow workers become organ donor.  This is very interesting that states are getting involved at that level to promote organ donation.  The only problem is only 3 companies used the credit last year.  Not sure if it is by ignorance or there was just very few living donor.  Let’s hope it is well publicized and more people will enjoy that benefits. Source: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/d03630a60df24455a097ad0dc947fdb9/PA-XGR–Legislative-Highlights/