Today is National Minority Donor Awareness Day. Why are minorities being urged to donate organs and tissue? Blood and tissue are usually matched within ethnic groups. Patients are less likely to reject an organ if it is donated by an individual who is genetically similar. People are usually more genetically similar to others of their own ethnicity than to people of other ethnicities. The more minority donors there are, the greater the likelihood that minority patients will find an organ that matches their tissue type.

Members of racial and ethnic minority groups, particularly African Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Hispanic Americans, are disproportionately afflicted with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The best therapy for ESRD is kidney transplantation because it improves patients' quality of life and survival rates. However, the number of organs and tissues donated by members of these groups and other underserved populations is low; therefore, the likelihood of a good match between donor and recipient and, ultimately, survival of the transplanted organ is reduced.

To learn more about how you can help, visit OrganDonor.gov.

National Minority Donor Awareness Day organ donor end-stage renal disease ESRD