April is National Donate Life Month a chance to honor and remember those who gave the ultimate gift, while raising awareness about organ and tissue donation.
To the editor: Adirondack Health and the Center for Donation and Transplant (CDT) are teaming up to help encourage Americans to register as organ, eye and tissue donors to honor those that saved lives through the gift of donation. Despite the challenges that came with COVID-19, CDT had an incredible year. In 2020, over 105 donor families said “yes” to organ donation. This represented 40% growth since 2018, helping to provide life-saving transplants to 200 organ recipients a record high for upstate New York and western Vermont. During that same time, nearly 500 donor families said “yes” to tissue donation. This represented a 400% increase since 2018. Because one tissue donor can enhance the lives of up to 75 people through tissue grafts, over 36,000 people will now benefit through healing, restored mobility and eyesight.