2023 was completed leaving behind a strong imprint of voluntary giving and social solidarityas expressed through the donation of organs, tissues and cells for transplantation.

Solid organ donation and transplantation has shown a steady upward trend in recent yearsachieving it largest number of deceased donors of the last 15 years and having doubled these donors in just one 3 years. In 2023, 87 donor families agreed to donate their organs, giving life to over 200 patients.

Hundreds of doctors and other health professionals, within the National Organ Donation and Transplantation Network, worked tirelessly to carry out one of the most complex and demanding undertakings in our health system, which is organ donation from a deceased donor. Worthy of mention is the offer of the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) of our country, from where the donation starts, while among them are the ICUs of the “Attikon” Hospital (16 donors), the Patras Hospital (8 donors), where the “C . Papanikolaou” (7 donors), GNA “Evangelismos”, GNNTH “Sotiria”, PGN Ioannina (from 6 donors), GNA “Papageorgiou” (5 donors).

The above donors contributed to the realization of 138 kidney transplants in GNA “Laiko”, GNTH “Ippokrateio”, GNA “Evangelismos”, PGN Patras and PGN Ioannina, 40 liver transplants in GNTH “Hippokrateio” and GNA “Laiko” and 14 heart and 12 lung transplants in the Onassios Cardiac Surgery Center.

Especially lung transplants, as a newly established transplant programwhich started in 2020, show a satisfactory dynamic with very good results for patients.

Alongside, record living kidney donors set in 2023. 101 living donors, family and friends of dialysis patients, proceeded to donate a kidney without problems, confirming the existence of strong human bonds, which lead to such a decision, but also the great safety of this surgery for the donor. The majority of these operations were performed in the Kidney Transplant Unit of the GNA “Laiko” (73 transplants), while living kidney transplants were also successfully performed in the other domestic Kidney Transplant Units.

Regarding hematopoietic stem cell transplants (bone marrow) from an unrelated donorthe upward trend that began a decade ago, continues steadily, offering more and more hope of salvation to patients with hematological diseases.

In 2023, 141 hematopoietic stem cell transplants were performed (A.A.K.) in patients in our country, including 31 children.

Besides the fortunate fact of finding a compatible donor for these patients, it is noteworthy that today 30% of transplants come from Greek volunteer donors.

In addition, Greek volunteer donors offered life to more than 80 compatible patients in foreign countries.

It is sealed like this our country’s participation in the Global Reservoir of Volunteer Bone Marrow Donors is deserved and in the international cooperation system for the exchange of A.A.K., highlighting the great degree of practical awareness of the Greek population as well as the valuable national work of the Donor Centers.

Specifically, during 2023, the Donor Center “Vision of Hope” highlighted 93 and the KEDMOP “Harise Zoi” 27 compatible volunteer donors. Worthy of mention are the scientific competence and the extra effort of the domestic A.A.K. Transplantation Units. (PGN “Attikon”, GNA “Evangelismos”, GONA “Agios Savvas”, GNTH “G. Papanikolaou”, PGN Patron, PGN Heraklion) in responding to the ever-increasing requests for hematopoietic cell collections from volunteer donors, not only for the domestic needs, but also for those of patients abroad.

The President of EOM, Prof. Georgios Papatheodoridis, says characteristically:

For the 3rd year in a row, we have achieved an improvement in the indicators related to organ donation and transplants, as well as primordial hematopoietic cells, which demonstrates the multifaceted and systematic effort made in the field of transplants, with the participation of all stakeholders, the support of the state and the trust of the citizens. This improvement allows us to be optimistic that our country can improve further and get closer to European standards, as long as the effort and support of the state in the Transplantation System continues. Thus, we have reasonable hopes to believe that 2024 will be an even better year for the benefit of our patients and their families.