DonateLife: Petition for Australians to register as eye and tissue donors

Two months after Madison Pearl was born with a severe heart defect, life-saving donor tissue was implanted into the aortic arch.

Her grandmother, Ann Baker, received the sclera (the white outer layer of the eyeball) from a donor so that she could replace an eye lost to shingles with a prosthesis.

Baker, 68, said, “We are very grateful to our donors for giving us this opportunity.

“Without her donor, there would be no Madison.”

Geelong, Victoria families are spearheading the DonateLife campaign to highlight the importance of eye and tissue donations.

In a survey last year of 1,032 people conducted by YouGov and DonateLife, Australians ranked eye tissue as the body part they most wanted to donate after death, with skin tissue coming in a close second.

Reasons included being “too personal”, “squeaky”, and not feeling healthy enough.

The number of national eye donors will be 1477 in 2022, an increase of 0.3% per year, while the number of living and cadaver tissue donors will decrease by 18% to 2472 and 12% to 276, respectively. was.

Chris Van Diemen, member of the Organ and Tissue Authority Advisory Board, said donating tissue “is always life-changing, but it can also be life-saving.”

“About 1 in 200 surgeries performed in Australia use human tissue grafts, so we can really see the wide-ranging impact that tissue donation can have,” said the president of the Australian Association for Biotherapy. One Van Diemen said.

“Anyone can sign up to become an eye or tissue donor. You can never feel too old or unhealthy. About a third of the donors were also over the age of 70.”

Madison was born with aortic stenosis. This created several deficiencies, including the aortic arch being too narrow to allow blood to flow freely to the heart.

The tissue implant in the arch was one of several major surgeries the 6-year-old had during her first few months of life.

Thankfully, the organization has grown with Madison, and “no more surgeries are needed at this time,” said mother Hannah Pearl.

“For her quality of life, it’s amazing,” she said. “What more could a parent ask for?”

Although she still struggles with heart, lung and mental health conditions, Madison has made great progress since the transplant.

Baker contracted the shingles virus in his optic nerve 18 years ago. After extensive chemotherapy to treat blood cancers has compromised the immune system.

She said that having the eye prosthesis “regained her confidence” and allowed her to return to work and feel like herself again.

Anyone who doesn’t feel comfortable donating an eye should know, “Donating a portion of the eye is not the whole eye for someone to see through,” she said. Told.

“I know it’s not an easy decision, but I ticked all the boxes to become a donor, as all family members do,” she said.

“If a tragedy strikes, your family knows that deciding whether or not you should become a donor does not add to their grief.”

It only takes a minute to register as an eye, tissue or organ donor. donatelife.gov.auor the Medicare app three times.

samantha.landy@news.com.au

Eye and Tissue Donation Facts

– Only 2% of people who die in Australian hospitals each year are considered for organ donation, but even if it happens outside of hospitals, more are able to donate tissue within 24 hours of death. Any person can be an eye or tissue donor.

– Tissue donations are always life-changing and can even save lives

-Anyone can be an eye and tissue donor – no one is too old, unhealthy, or blind.

-Eye and tissue donations are treated like any other surgery, the incision is closed and you are dressed with dignity and respect.

– Approximately 1 in 200 surgeries performed in Australia use human tissue grafts

-Many ALC repairs are due to deceased tissue donors

– Bone tissue is the most commonly transplanted tissue and eye donation is the oldest form of transplantation

– It takes 1 minute to register as an eye, tissue and organ donor at donatelife.gov.au or 3 taps in the Medicare app.

Source: Donate Life

first published as Petition for Australians to register as eye and tissue donors: DonateLife