If it were an Olympic medal, it would be a silver. “In 2023, Italy rose to second place among the main European countries in terms of organ donation: the rate reached was 28.2 donors per million inhabitants, behind Spain (world leader with 48.9) but ahead of France (26.3), the United Kingdom (21.3) and Germany (11.4).” Confirming the result is the latest analytical report of the annual activity of the National Transplant Network, published today on the website of the National Transplant Center (Cnt). The document contains over 200 pages of analysis, graphs and tables that focus in detail on the entire activity of the donation and transplant network of the National Health Service, with regard to solid organs but also tissues, hematopoietic stem cells, gametes and intestinal microbiota.
The report, which elaborates on preliminary data published last January, confirms that 2023 was the best year ever for reported donors (3,092, +16.2% on 2022), donors used (1,667, +14.2%) and transplants performed (4,466, +15.2%). “Of these, 198 were carried out through national emergency programs, while 197 transplants involved pediatric patients. Transplants from non-heart-beating donors were particularly numerous: there were 444, double the previous year. The overall growth in donation and transplant activity translated into a slight drop in the number of patients waiting to receive an organ: as of December 31, 2023, there were 7,941, of which 76% were waiting for a kidney, compared to 8,112 at the end of 2022”, the document underlines.
“Among the transplant centers, the City of Health and Science in Turin carried out the highest number (457), confirming its first place in terms of kidney and liver transplant activity. It is followed by the University Hospital of Padua (435), the national leader in lung and pancreas transplants, while in third place is the Sant’Orsola Polyclinic in Bologna (322). The National Transplant Center notes that among the southern centers, the result of the Bari Polyclinic stands out, the first Italian center for the number of heart transplants. As regards organ procurement activity, 221 hospitals received an organ donation in 2023: the most active hospitals were the Ospedale Civile Maggiore in Verona (55 donations), the Bellaria Hospital in Bologna (46) and the Careggi Polyclinic in Florence”. (46).
Analyzing the report, it also confirms “the growth in the donation activity (15,327, +24.4%) and transplantation (24,944, +15.2%) of tissues, in particular corneas and bone, as well as in the donations of hematopoietic stem cells”. Finally, the report also analyzes the trends in the donation activity of reproductive cells, the inspection activity of the National Transplant Center in the territory, “the quality controls in the transplant immunology laboratories and the data of the management of clinical risk and of the reactions and adverse events recorded in the Transplant Information System. Finally, this year there is a focus on experimental intestinal microbiota transplants: a program that as of December 31, 2023 has seen the realization of 214 interventions in 10 authorized centers throughout Italy”, the report highlights.
“The numbers tell of a Transplant Network that is more lively and efficient than ever, which in 2024 is also obtaining positive results in line with the records achieved last year – underlines the director of the Cnt Giuseppe Feltrin – With this report, which promptly accounts for 12 months of work of an extremely articulated and complex reality, the National Transplant Center offers a detailed and transparent analysis tool, fulfilling its role of coordinating the Transplant Network at the service of the national health system and regional realities”.
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