As more patients than ever desperately wait for a donor... would YOU donate a kidney if the NHS paid you £35,000?

As more patients than ever desperately wait for a donor...

would YOU donate a kidney if the NHS paid you £35,000? By Daniel Rodger and Angela Epstein Published: 01:25, 27 August 2024 | Updated: 01:46, 27 August 2024 e-mail View comments More patients than ever are waiting desperately for a new kidney. There are 10 per cent more people on the waiting list for a transplant than a year ago, according to the latest figures. About six people a week in the UK die waiting for a kidney transplant – often after spending several years on dialysis .

But the real number might be higher, as hundreds more are removed from the list annually because their declining health makes them unsuitable. The reason is simple: a chronic shortage of kidneys from living or deceased donors. As a result, demand vastly outstrips supply.

This is made worse by spiralling obesity levels in the UK. Over the next decade, hundreds of thousands more patients will have kidney disease as a result. More patients than ever are waiting desperately for a new kidney.

There are 10 per cent more people on the waiting list for a transplant than a year ago, latest figures reveal (stock image) Read More Kidney donor reveals how an extraordinary act of altruism saved the life of a fellow mum Being obese [defined as having a BMI of 30 and above] comes with a nearly four-fold risk of end-stage kidney disease compared to those within the normal range. So what's the solution? As a researcher exploring alternative ways to source.