Written by Zoe Engels, Contributing Writer and Editor
We’re back with a fresh round-up of news stories about organ, eye, and tissue donation and transplantation! It’s amazing to see how many heartfelt stories and scientific advances have popped up since our Spring round-up. While we know there’s always room for growth and improvement, especially given that there are still over 103,000 people on the transplant waiting list in the U.S. alone, we still want to acknowledge and celebrate the positives. So, without further ado, here are five exciting stories that have caught our eyes recently:
Medical student Skotti Torrence has founded not one but two chapters—SODA at the University of Nevada, Reno in 2018 as well as SODA at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine in 2022! UNR Med’s chapter won our Most Impactful Education Event in 2023 and received the 2024 Most Impactful Community Partner Award from their OPO, Donor Network West. Skotti, who is also the SODA National Board of Directors’ Graduate Student Liaison, was recently honored for her advocacy work at the Reno Aces Home Run for Life game. Way to go, Skotti!
To learn how you can start a SODA chapter like Skotti, visit sodanational.org/students.
Illinois launched a cool new community service hours program called LEAD, or Lifesaving Education and Awareness on Donation, on September 3rd. Students can earn community service hours and a recognition certificate from the Illinois Secretary of State’s office for their work as ambassadors for the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Program through LEAD. As ambassadors, students can host pre-approved events on their campuses and in their communities to increase awareness and advocacy for organ, eye, and tissue donation. Interested students are encouraged to form teams of five and visit LifeGoesOn.com for more information.
On June 24, 2024, surgeons at Northwestern Medicine performed their first awake kidney transplant, even discharging the patient the very next day! 28-year-old John Nicholas told Northwestern Medicine’s newsroom that he felt no pain during the procedure, performed under a spinal anesthesia shot. This procedure could not only decrease the length of a patient’s transplant stay but could also offer increased access to transplantation for patients who are at a high-risk for complications due to anesthesia. Northwestern Medicine is looking to establish the AWAKE Program (Accelerated Surgery Without General Anesthesia in Kidney Transplantation) for high-risk general anesthesia patients and those who would benefit from this procedure.
A new study conducted by doctors at NYU Langone, found that the risk of death for kidney donors, which has long been low, has dropped by more than 50 percent in the last decade. That’s a huge milestone in the world of donation and transplantation as kidney donation is the most common form of transplantation, and nearly 90,000 people are on the waiting list for kidney transplants with most people spending three to five years on that list. One milestone that has contributed to this increased safety in kidney transplantation is laparoscopic surgery, a less invasive form of kidney removal.
We just had to include at least one heartfelt meeting between a donor and recipient. Back in 2019, New Jersey resident Ed Silberman and his family took to social media to search for a kidney donor. Dave Heal of Colorado saw the post and took action. After over a year of tests and research plus a pandemic delay, Heal donated his kidney to Silberman in December of 2020. Heal and Silberman stayed in touch, but they met in-person for the first time this past June of 2024 in Colorado. It was an emotional first meeting with Silberman asking Heal, “By the way, you want to say ‘hi’ to your kidney? It’s right here.”
Do you have an organ donation in the news story that you’d like to see SODA highlight? Leave a comment below letting us know!👇
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