A WARNING has been issued of a ‘worrying decline’ in living kidney donation in Hampshire as national figures hit an eight year low.

NHS Blood and Transplant has issued the warning after a 10 per cent decline in 2017 on the highest ever year of donations, 2013, and it is the lowest figure since 2009.

In Hampshire, there were only 24 living kidney donors in 2017, compared to 37 in 2013. There are currently 126 people waiting for a kidney in Hampshire and 48 have died on the transplant waiting list waiting for a kidney in the last five years.

The figures have been released for World Kidney Day today, (March 8), with an appeal for more people to consider making a life-transforming donation while they are still alive.

Lisa Burnapp, NHS Blood and Transplant lead nurse for Kidney Donation, said: “Last year, 261 people died in the UK waiting for a kidney transplant, and many of those lives could have been saved through increased living kidney donation.

“Living donation has been a major success story for the UK, with 1 in 3 patients receiving a kidney transplant from a living donor, so the decline in Hampshire and around the UK is worrying.

“We are investigating the causes and working closely with the clinical community, NHS England and Health Departments in all four UK countries to reverse the trend.

“Anonymous altruistic donations are especially important because they can start transplant chains. It’s no coincidence that the high figures for 2013 came when altruistic donation was at its highest ever level.”

For more information on living donation, visit: organdonation.nhs.uk.