Center for Organ Recovery and Education sees record-breaking number of organ donations

A nonprofit that facilitates organ, tissue and cornea donations for the region saw a record-breaking number of organ donors in 2021.

The Center for Organ Recovery and Education announced Thursday that 2021 marked the third consecutive record-breaking year.

The group — which facilitates donations across western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Chemung County, N.Y. — said it helped to save more than 100,000 lives through organ, issue and cornea donations in 2021, an increase of more than 10% from the previous year.

The organization said it facilitated nearly 700 life-saving organ transplants, thanks to a record-breaking 325 organ donors.

Of those donors, 10 of them were over the age of 75, a group that is often overlooked for organ donation. That is the highest number of donors over the age of 75 the region has ever seen and a 67% increase over 2020.

At 95, Cecil F. Lockhart of Welch, W.Va., became the country’s oldest organ donor in May. CORE helped Lockhart donate his liver to a woman in her 60s, who continues to do well after receiving the donation.

Of the 325 donors in the region last year, 235 were from Western Pennsylvania. Their organ donations helped save the lives of 485 people, CORE said.

“It is a true honor, because we know that we are able to provide the donor family some meaning at the worst time of their life,” CORE’s Susan Stuart said, explaining that organ donations give the recipients “a second chance at life.”

The region also broke records for tissue donation, with a 7% increase in tissue donors from the previous year, according to CORE. There were 1,315 tissue donors in the region CORE serves.

With 664 donors offering sight-saving cornea donations, there was a 47% increase in organ donations in 2021, CORE said. More than 99,000 people were healed or had their sight restored through cornea or tissue donations.

Currently, about 7,000 Pennsylvanians — including 2,000 in Western Pennsylvania — are waiting for life-saving organ transplants. Nationally, more than 100,000 people need an organ transplant.

“We know that we’re giving them hope when they see that our numbers are going up every year,” Stuart said.

Half of Pennsylvanians are registered as organ donors. Stuart said that, while CORE is appreciative of everyone who has registered, she would encourage those who have yet to register as organ donors to consider doing so.

“It is the greatest gift that you can give and you can leave a legacy and be remembered for the act of kindness that you provided,” she said.

People can register as organ donors online at registerme.org/core.