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DonorMom says:

This comment is for the writer of this news article, Jennifer Ashton. As the medical reporter for CBS news your reports have the ability to influence and educate many people.

I take great issue with the term you used in your report "cadaver kidney". It is an inaccurate term and one that is not used by donor recipients or donor families.

My son, along with many other heros, chose to be an organ donors. He was a healthy young man who lost his life in a car accident. His heart, liver, kidneys, pancreas, corneas, skin and tissue have helped other life their lives. I fully supported his decision as I let him go.

I have met his heart recipient and his kidney/pancreas recipient. My grief is eased a bit knowing that he has helped others extend their joy with their families.

He is not a "cadaver donor". He is a person who had a full life that was cut short. But, he made the decison to help others live. I am an advocate of organ donation and encourage everyone to consider the option.

Please, Jennifer, take the "cadaver donor" out of your vocabulary.


cljnorsk replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; Dear Donor Mom,
What a sad time for you to lose your son. He was very generous to donate his organs to save other lives. You are right, your son's organs were not from a cadaver. The correct term is deceased. Jennifer didn't write the article, by the way.
I am sorry for your loss.


sparkles47 replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; Dear Donor Mom,
My sympathy to you and your family on the loss of your son. Because of your son's and your generosity patients were truly given the Gift of Life. The term "cadaveric donor" is a phrase the transplant community used for several years. In more recent years, the terminology has been changed to "deceased donor." In time, I hope the old phrase will be put to rest and never heard again. Until then, we'll continue to spread the word.

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dwmoskowitz says:: There'd be no waiting list for cadaver kidneys if my 2002 paper showing how to prevent 90% of dialysis had received any media attention. Look at the numbers: 100,000 new patients go on dialysis in the US every year; the average life expectancy is 3-4 years; there are 450,000 dialysis patients of whom 90,000 have registered for a kidney; but there are only 35,000 cadaver kidneys available each year.

Now imagine that 90% of dialysis were being prevented. True, Medicare (and taxpayers) would be saving close to $50 billion a year. That's $50 billion less in salaries for hospitals, nephrologists and, most importantly, Medicare employees to put in their pockets.

But with only 10,000 new dialysis patients, there'd be more than enough cadaver kidneys for them all. There'd be no waiting list at all.

For details of how this story has been hushed up for the past 9 years, please see http://www.genomed.com/images/guyot_dec09nl.pdf .; reply

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Stephanieaev says:: MatchingDonors.com is really great. Even Hollywood execs have gotten behind them to create the website's next PSA through a social media advertiser. Check it out: http://zooppa.com/contests/matchingdonors-wants-a-piece-of-you.; reply

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LIFESHARERS says:: The generosity of live organ donors is wonderful. It's a shame we need so many live organ donors. Americans bury or cremate 20,000 transplantable organs every year.

There is another good way to put a big dent in the organ shortage -- if you don't agree to donate your organs when you die, then you go to the back of the waiting list if you ever need an organ to live.

Giving organs first to organ donors will convince more people to register as organ donors. It will also make the organ allocation system fairer. About 50% of the organs transplanted in the United States go to people who haven't agreed to donate their own organs when they die.

Anyone who wants to donate their organs to others who have agreed to donate theirs can join LifeSharers. LifeSharers is a non-profit network of organ donors who agree to offer their organs first to other organ donors when they die. Membership is free at www.lifesharers.org or by calling 1-888-ORGAN88. There is no age limit, parents can enroll their minor children, and no one is excluded due to any pre-existing medical condition. LifeSharers has over 14,700 members.

Please contact me if your viewers would like to learn more about our innovative approach to increasing the number of organ donors. I can arrange interviews with some of our local members if you're interested. Please let me know if you have any questions. David J. Undis, Executive Director of LifeSharers at www.lifesharers.org 6509 Cornwall Drive Nashville, TN 37205 phone 615-351-8622.; reply

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fwd23515 says:

Organs--the new Chinese/Indian growth industry! Only they ain't growing them, they're taking them. See the new book The Red Market: On the Trail of the World's Organ Brokers, Bone Thieves, Blood Farmers, and Child Traffickers.


cljnorsk replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; I was on dialysis for 7 1/2 years. I would never consider a third world country kidney. That is exploitation at its very worst. Fortunately, matchingdonors.com is a legitimate website. I was skeptical, but did a lot of research, and I found a beautiful and altruistic donor. Because of her generosity, I have been given a new life. There really are success stories, and genuine heroes in this world. Believe in the positive!


mask2697 replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; "in order to avoid any illegal activity. It is against the law to pay for organs."
In other words if you are paying for the organ its self you are on an illegal website, this is to stop the illegal market that mentioned...

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Bojax39 says:

"More organ seekers turning to Web to find them"

More 3rd world organ bootleggers turning to the Web to sell them.


mask2697 replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; "in order to avoid any illegal activity. It is against the law to pay for organs" this makes that illegal to do so even if you did it illegally you wont be able to make a long term profit without being busted, I am pretty sure doctors check where the donations come from so if its an illegal website its almost instantly obvious


Bojax39 replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; by mask2697: "It is against the law to pay for organs this makes that illegal to do so even if you did it illegally you wont be able to make a long term profit without being busted, I am pretty sure doctors check where the donations come from so if its an illegal website its almost instantly obvious"

Well, how smug of you..... :-)

So criminals will automatically refrain for harvesting organs and selling them because it's illegal and they MIGHT get busted? And desperate recipients won't pay for organs illegally obtained because they'd rather be law abiding and DEAD? And ALL doctors have ethics against doing anything illegal?

Don't know what planet YOU'RE from, but here on Earth.......

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