Publication date: October 2011   Review date: October 2013

Organ donation is giving an organ to help someone who needs a transplant. Kidneys, heart, liver, lungs, pancreas and the small bowel can all be transplanted. Transplants are one of the biggest achievements of modern medicine and can save or greatly enhance the lives of seriously ill patients. However, they depend completely on donors and their families consenting to organ donation. We interviewed 39 people about their experiences of solid organ donation, including donor families, living donors and  recipients. All of the people we interviewed had direct experience of organ donation. This site does not include the experiences of people who chose not to consent to organ donation. Select from the key topics below, choose from the full list of topics, or explore all the interviews.