How common are kidney donations?

Kidneys are the most frequently donated and most request transplant among organ donations. The functioning lifespan of a kidney that has been transplanted is typically nine years.

Since most of the diseases that affect the kidneys affect both simultaneously, a living donor is not typically at a greater risk for health problems than a person who has two kidneys.

Here's a closer look at some kidney transplant statistics:

• The number of people added to the list between July 2006 and June 2007: 33,981
• The total number of people on the kidney waiting list as of June 2007: 73,85
• The number of transplants from deceased donors from July 2006 to June 2007: 10,571
• The number of transplants from living donors from July 2006 to 2007: 6,164
• The rate of mortality while awaiting a kidney: 7 percent