Living donors can donate a kidney or part of their liver, allowing both the donor and recipient to lead healthy and fulfilling lives, while cadaver donations can save multiple lives through organs such as the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, pancreas, and corneas.
Published Aug 24, 2025 | 12:07 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 24, 2025 | 12:07 PM
The event, held on Saturday, 23 August, was attended by MLA MK Mohan and actor Neelima Rani.
Synopsis: India has made significant progress in organ transplantation. In 2024, over 18,900 organ transplants were performed, the highest recorded in a single year, compared to fewer than 5,000 in 2013. India now ranks third globally in total organ transplants, after the USA and China. Despite these numbers, the demand for organs far exceeds supply, making awareness and pledging essential for saving more lives.
MGM Healthcare held a special felicitation programme to honour organ donors and their families, recognising their invaluable contribution to saving lives.
The event, held on Saturday, 23 August, was attended by MLA MK Mohan and actor Neelima Rani. The hospital also organised a walkathon themed “Miles for Lives” to promote organ donation awareness and encourage people to register as donors.
Organised by MGM Healthcare’s Institute of Liver Diseases, Transplant & HPB Surgery, the walkathon started at MGM Healthcare on Nelson Manickam Road and concluded at Tower Park, Anna Nagar. Hundreds of healthcare professionals, hospital staff, and members of the public enthusiastically participated.
Mohan spoke about the government’s ongoing initiatives to promote and support organ donation, while Neelima Rani emphasised the profound impact of donating organs, noting that it provides recipients with a renewed chance at life.
India has made significant progress in organ transplantation. In 2024, over 18,900 organ transplants were performed, the highest recorded in a single year, compared to fewer than 5,000 in 2013. India now ranks third globally in total organ transplants, after the USA and China. Despite these numbers, the demand for organs far exceeds supply, making awareness and pledging essential for saving more lives.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Prashanth Rajagopalan, Managing Director of MGM Healthcare, said, “MGM Healthcare is proud to organise the donor felicitation and walkathon. While medical science has advanced tremendously, enabling both living and cadaver donations to be safe and effective, our organ donation rate remains strikingly low at less than one per million population, compared with over 40 per million in countries like the US and Spain.”
He added that living donors can donate a kidney or part of their liver, allowing both the donor and recipient to lead healthy and fulfilling lives, while cadaver donations can save multiple lives through organs such as the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, pancreas, and corneas. Dr. Rajagopalan emphasised that the main barrier to organ donation is not medical feasibility, but social hesitation and lack of awareness.
Dr. Thiagarajan Srinivasan, Senior Consultant and Director of the Institute of Liver Diseases, Transplant and HPB Surgery at MGM Healthcare, explained, “Organ donation is one of the greatest gifts of modern medicine, and liver transplantation exemplifies how lives can be saved and restored. The liver’s remarkable ability to regenerate makes both living and deceased donor liver transplants highly effective, with most recipients going on to lead full and productive lives.”
He mentioned that brain-dead donors remain the cornerstone of organ transplantation, though organs from donors after cardiac death are also being successfully used worldwide. Dr. Srinivasan emphasised that both pathways must be promoted more widely in India to meet the growing demand, and hospitals should build structured, sustainable transplant programmes with trained teams, advanced infrastructure, and strong ethical practices.
The event also highlighted the need for structured hospital programmes, trained teams, and ethical standards to expand organ donation. Through initiatives like felicitation ceremonies, awareness campaigns, and walkathons, MGM Healthcare aims to educate the public, reduce hesitation, and inspire more people to become donors, ultimately saving and transforming lives.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
