Donate Life Month 2015
Talking Points
April is National Donate Life Month, a time to honor donors and donor families who have made life-saving gifts
to patients in need. It is also a time to raise awareness for the ongoing need for organ, tissue and eye donation.
Transplants offer patients a new chance at happy, productive and normal lives and return them to their families,
friends and communities.
As home to the Wisconsin Donor Network and Wisconsin Tissue Bank, BloodCenter of Wisconsin encourages
people to become an organ, tissue and eye donor with a donor dot and signature on their driver’s license, and
by joining the online registry.
BloodCenter works in collaboration with its partners in the community, such as hospitals, drive sponsors and
government officials, to promote the importance of donation. For more information and to join a registry, visit
www.bcw.edu/sharinglife. Individuals are also encouraged to share their wishes with their family members.
Organ Donation Facts
 Nationally, more than 123,000 people are waiting for transplants; 2,500 of them are in Wisconsin.
 Twenty-one people die every day waiting for a transplant.
 Every 10 minutes someone is added to the list.
 In 2014, the Wisconsin Donor Network helped to facilitate 198 life-saving organ transplants.
 Heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas and small intestines can be transplanted.
 People of all ages and medical histories should consider themselves potential donors. Your medical
condition at the time of death will determine what organs and tissue can be donated.
Organ Donation FAQs
What does it mean to register? Having your name included in the Wisconsin donor registry means that you
have authorized the gift of your organs, tissues and eyes upon your death. Registering indicates legal consent
for donation. Your gift will be used to save and improve the lives of others.
Does my religion support donation? Every major religion in the United States supports organ, tissue and eye
donation as one of the highest expressions of compassion and generosity.
Is there a cost to be an organ, eye and tissue donor? There is no cost to the donor’s family or estate for
donation. The donor family pays only for medical expenses before death and costs associated with funeral
expenses.
Does my social and/or financial status play any part in whether or not I will receive a transplant if I ever need
one? No. When you are on the transplant waiting list for an organ donor, what really counts is the severity of
your illness, body size, tissue type, blood type and other important medical information.
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Tissue/Eye Donation Facts
 More than one million Americans receive tissue transplants of bone, heart valves, tendons, ligaments,
corneas and skin annually.

One in 20 people will need a tissue transplant in their lifetime.

One tissue donor can improve the lives of more than 50 people.

BloodCenter of Wisconsin’s Wisconsin Tissue Bank serves 76 hospitals throughout the state.

In 2014, BloodCenter supported 450 families who gave the gift of tissue donation.

More than 25,000 patients received tissue in 2014 through BloodCenter of Wisconsin as a result of
donor gifts.

Each year, more than 47,000 corneal transplants are needed to improve lives across the U.S.
Marrow Donation Facts
 Nationally, nearly 14,000 patients need marrow transplants and blood cell transplants each year but do
not have a matching donor in their family.

These patients depend on the Be The Match Registry for a life-saving marrow match.

By joining the Be The Match Marrow Registry you could be the life-saving match for someone waiting
for a transplant. Visit www.bcw.edu/sharinglife to register.

Joining Be The Match Registry is simple. Basic requirements for registering to be a potential donor
include being between the ages of 18 and 44, in general good health and willing to be available if
identified as a match for a patient in need. Once a health history form is completed, a mouth swab test
is given. The swabs are tested to determine tissue type and individuals are only contacted if identified as
a match. The process, including paperwork, takes approximately 15 minutes.
Blood Donation Facts

Every three seconds someone needs blood. Blood is needed by a variety of patients including those
with cancer, premature babies, accident victims and those undergoing surgery.

There is an ongoing need for Type O Negative blood. O Negative blood, the universal blood type, can be
transfused to patients with any blood type. For this reason, it is commonly used by emergency
responders to treat and stabilize patients with severe injuries.

Donating blood is quick, safe and relatively painless. Generally, you can donate blood if you are at least
16 years old (with a parent’s consent), weigh 110 pounds and are free of cold, flu or allergy symptoms.

You can donate whole blood every 56 days. You can donate more frequently if you donate platelets or
plasma. You can donate red cells every 16 weeks.
For more information on donation, visit www.bcw.edu/sharinglife