Organ donation is the
donation of
biological tissue or an
organ of the
human body from a living or dead person to a living recipient in need of a
transplantation.
Transplantable organs and tissues are removed in a
surgical procedure following a determination, based on the donor's medical and social history, of which are suitable for transplantation. Such procedures are termed
allotransplantations, distinguish them from
xenotransplantation, the transfer of animal organs into human bodies. As of June 21, 2013, there are 118,617 people waiting for life-saving organ transplants in the U.S. Of these, 96,645 await kidney transplants. While views of organ donation are positive there is a large gap between the numbers of registered donors compared to those awaiting organ donations on a global level.