Manchester has the lowest rates of kidney donations across England with a staggering 55% fewer deceased donors than Cambridge, according to a study.
The research comes after Cambridge University and NHS Blood and Transplant found that there were ‘striking’ variations of kidney donations from people who had died depending on geographical location.
The study also revealed that between April 2010 and December 2011, only 1,528 people out of 27,482 who died in critical care became kidney donors.
Glasgow has the lowest donation rates in the UK with Cardiff having the highest.
Dominic Summers, from the Department of Surgery at the University of Cambridge, said: “We did not expect to find such marked differences in organ donation rates between different regions in the UK after already taking into account the various factors known to influence the number of organ donors.
“Our findings indicate that despite huge progress in organ donation rates over the last five years, there is considerable scope to increase these rates further and improve more lives through kidney transplantation.”
There are around 6,000 patients in the UK waiting for a kidney transplant, shockingly 373 people died between 2012 and 2013.
Two thirds of transplanted kidneys are from deceased donors and kidneys from a certain type of donor are offered in the first instance to patients in the same area.
Manchester had ‘significantly lower’ donation rates, with only 4.5% compared to Cambridge having a 7% donation rate.
Paul Murphy, national clinical lead for organ donation at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “Every potential donor is precious and can save lives, but if they are not identified and referred then they, and their family, are denied the opportunity to be an organ donor and to transform the lives of others after their death.”
Image courtesy of North Dakota National Guard via Flickr, with thanks.
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