Doctors’ joy as number of people donating their organs after death rose by 95 per cent in a decade

THE NUMBER of Brits donating their organs after death has doubled in a decade, official figures reveal. A record 1,575 gave the gift of life to transplant patients in 2017/18 - up 11 per cent in a year.

It was the biggest increase in deceased donors for almost three decades, according to NHS Blood and Transplant. And overall numbers were twice as high as 2007/8 when there were just 809.

The rise comes after Theresa May announced plans to introduce an “opt-out” system for organ donation. Currently anyone who wants their body to be used for transplants after death has to join the donor register.

But ministers are keen to introduce a new system of deemed consent. Under proposals launched in December, it will be presumed a person agrees to be a donor unless they specifically say no.

Wales introduced an opt-out system in 2015. Every day three patients die needing life-saving transplant. There are currently 6,044 people across the UK waiting list for an organ.

Sally Johnson, NHS Blood and Transplant Director of Organ Donation and Transplantation, said: “I am so grateful to all those families who have chosen to help others at a time of personal tragedy. This news will give hope to the desperately ill people who are waiting for that lifesaving phone call.

“The increase in donations and transplants is made possible thanks to the generosity of donors and their families. It also reflects the hard work of all the NHS staff who make this incredible service possible.

“We need to stress that the deadly shortage of organ donors remains. Around three people who could benefit from a donated organ still die a day.”