Published on: 09-Apr-2019
Kevin Cmunt, President/CEO for Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network and? Shannon Wyatt, Donation Specialist for Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network discuss the role of tissue grafts in sports medicine as well as the how we can all participate in honoring ?The Gift of Donation?.
It?s often said that a single person who is willing to donate his or her organs after death can save up to eight different people. That?s because there are eight major organs that can be donated: the liver (which can be split and used to save two people), the heart, the pancreas, a pair of kidneys and a pair of lungs.
Needless to say, signing up to become an organ donor may be one of the most impactful decisions a person can make in his or her lifetime. Consider the fact that every 20 minutes someone is added to the national transplant list, and that around 20 people die every day waiting for a transplant that never arrives. Hopefully this crystallizes just how important such a gesture of generosity is in helping people who are suffering from all kinds of illnesses.
What Kinds of Organs Can Be Donated?
As we said earlier, there are eight major organs (the lungs and kidneys are counted twice since they come in pairs) that can successfully be transplanted. Click here for closer look and see what characterizes each type of transplant.
Kevin Cmunt is President/CEO of Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network. In that role, he provides overall leadership for the organization, guides its strategic direction and ensures that the organization stays true to its mission ? to save and enhance the lives of as many people as possible through organ and tissue donation.
