Organ transplants: Black people wait up to six months longer, NHS figures show

NHS data shows black patients wait on average six months longer for organ transplants than the general population.

The best match is someone from the same ethnicity. However, only 2% of donors in 2021/22 were black, compared to his 4% of the population.

Figures also show that black families are less likely to agree to organ donation than white families.

The NHS says there is an “urgent need” for more ethnic minority people to donate.

The NHS Blood and Transplant report, which was heard on BBC Radio 1Xtra’s If You Don’t Know podcast ahead of Thursday’s publication, found that while waiting times were improving across all ethnicities in England; Black people have been shown to wait an average of 735 days for a kidney transplant. .

In comparison, the average wait time for the general population is 550 days. 650 days for Asians and 488 days for Caucasians.

Kidney patients make up the majority of those on waiting lists, and some face the longest wait times. This is because transplants require matching blood and tissue types, whereas other organs only need matching blood types. But there are similar disparities in waiting times for other organ transplants.

Winnie Andango, from NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “Black people face longer waiting times because fewer people from their own ethnic groups come forward to donate their organs.”

“During the COVID-19 outbreak, so many patients were suspended and now they are being added back to the list. It means less.”

Sarah Hutchinson, who has Alport syndrome, which affects kidney function, has been waiting on the organ transplant list for four years.

She undergoes dialysis, which helps her kidneys work and removes toxins from her body, but she says it can be painful and tiring.

“It’s a roller coaster of emotions. It’s fatigue, exhaustion. If anything, that’s what brings you down,” she said on the “If You Don’t Know” podcast.

“I’m struggling with my energy levels right now and not being able to do the things you take for granted anymore.”

She said receiving a kidney transplant would be “life-changing” and hopes to encourage more people in the black community to donate their organs.

“I completely understand why so many people don’t come forward. To help themselves, and they say ‘black lives matter,’ but we have to do it for our own communities. We need to do more, and organ donation is definitely one of them.”

Her son, 22-year-old footballer Shay, also suffers from the same condition, which has affected his career as a striker for Norwich City FC’s under-23 team.

“I really couldn’t play the full 90 minutes,” he said. “My muscles were tiring faster. Even after an injury, it took longer than necessary to recover.”

His health improved after receiving a transplant, first from his father in 2018 and then from a stranger in 2020 when his first transplant failed.

“Afterwards, I felt great about myself and didn’t feel as tired. I’m very grateful to everyone who came forward,” he added.

Shay was able to receive her second transplant thanks to her uncle Simon.

Simon donated his kidney as part of a sharing scheme. That meant his nephew got a better-matched kidney and his organs went into other people’s hands.

He says living with one kidney has not affected his life and wants to encourage more people to consider donating during their lifetime.

“It didn’t change me anything,” Simon said. “I actually ran the London Marathon to show people that it’s okay to donate. Donating doesn’t change lives.”

Organ donation laws in the UK changed to an opt-out system in 2020, meaning consent is assumed unless a person records a decision not to donate.

Scotland adopted an opt-out system in 2021, and Wales has had this approach since 2015. Laws in Northern Ireland were changed last year.

But as transplant services recover from the pandemic, the number of donors in the UK was still lower last year than before the law change.

Despite the introduction of an opt-out approach, families of the deceased are still involved in decision-making before organ donation takes place.

The NHS report says one reason black families disagree is because people don’t know what their loved ones want.

“I come from a black African family, and death and dying are not normal things we talk about over dinner,” Andango said.

“So when something like this happens, it feels like a really big decision and it’s made difficult because we haven’t really talked about it.

“The important thing is that people need to start having those conversations.”

The government said it would announce additional measures to make the most of organs “to save as many lives as possible”.

Health Secretary Neil O’Brien said: “More people, particularly people of black and Asian descent, need to register and share their organ donation decisions with their families so their loved ones can follow their wishes.” Ta.

To find out more about black organ donors, listen to BBC Sounds’ new podcast If You Don’t Know.