Donors help to save over 50,000 patients

JANE KIRBY

kidney transplant patients, 1,900 who received a new pancreas, 3,900 people with new hearts or lungs or both, 9,800 with new livers and 1,000 who received new intestine.

Some patients have received more than one organ, such as a new kidney and a pancreas.

Over the past five years, there has been a 20 per cent rise in yearly transplant figures, to reach a record 4,753 in 2016/17. The number of people on the NHS Organ Donor Register has also reached a record number of 23.6m.