Organ donors hit record high but more wanted

Cheng Wong

A record high of over 400,000 voluntary registrations are in the Centralized Organ Donation Register, Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau said as he urged residents to continue registering actively.

At a thanksgiving ceremony to promote organ donation, Lo yesterday said "historical records are meant to be broken," stressing the current registered number still has significant potential for growth, given Hong Kong's population of 7.5 million.

He noted that there have been two remarkable cross-border organ donation cases in the past two years, including successful heart transplants for four-month-old baby girl Tsz-hei and eight-month-old baby girl Whitney.

Lo expressed gratitude to the donors' parents for their courageous decision to donate their child's organs during such a painful time, which led to these positive outcomes.

Hong Kong Society of Transplantation president James Fung Yan-yue said a total of 2,163 patients have received organ donations over the past 15 years.

However, he indicated that Hong Kong has one of the lowest organ donation rates in the world, averaging about 3.6 donors per million people.

"Therefore, every organ donated in Hong Kong over the past two years is a very special and precious gift," Fung said, adding that over 2,600 patients are still on the waiting list for organ transplants.

He thanked all donors and their families, urging continued support from the public for organ donation.

Hong Kong Academy of Medicine president Philip Li Kam-tao said that while the city's transplantation techniques have improved and successful cases are increasing, public awareness of organ donation needs to be enhanced.

He noted that the academy's newly established organ donation task group aims to promote a culture of donation via education and collaboration, seeking to improve public understanding and encourage support for this life-saving initiative.

President of the Hong Kong Liver Transplant Patients' Association Wong Lung-fai said the Health Promotion Branch has established over 20 organ donation street booths each month at universities, public hospitals and government departments since Covid-19.

He said that residents can register in under five minutes with their ID, significantly boosting registration numbers.

Wong also said media coverage of organ donation appeals has raised public awareness of the issue.

"During daily commutes, I often hear people discussing organ donation, which is very important."