Too Few Human Organs for Transplantation, Too Many in Need... and the Gap Widens

THE ORGAN SHORTAGE problem has been called "a public health crisis with a cure." Each year, however, the "crisis" becomes more critical, and the "cure," although supported in concept by health professionals and the American public, loses ground in practice. In the last few years, organ donation has leveled off and even decreased for some organs. At the same time, the waiting list for organ transplantation has been increasing by thousands of individuals each year. As lengthy as this list may be, it represents only a fraction of the actual numbers of people who could be rehabilitated with an organ transplant. As of a month ago, 22 340 individuals were waiting for a transplant; of these, 18 163 were waiting for a kidney. And yet in 1989 (the most recent year for which transplantation statistics are available), just 8905 kidney transplants were performed—7063 from cadaveric donors and 1842 from living-related