According to UK Transplant Activity Report 2005-2006, as of March 2006, there were 1,595 people from Black & Minority Ethnic (BME) groups who are registered for heart, lung, and kidney or liver transplants. However, over the last two years, less than 2 percent from these groups have become donors.

Only 13% of those registered for kidney transplants are Asian, and 7.1% are black although they comprise only 4% and 2% of the population respectively. And 1.4 per cent of those on the NHS Organ Donor Register are of Asian origin and only 0.4 % on the register is of African and Caribbean origin.

People from ethnic minorities are more likely to have a successful transplant if they receive an organ from someone of the same ethnic group. This is because their tissue type matches better so the organ is less likely to be rejected.

Unfortunately, while the need for donor organs is three to four times higher than among the general population due to high incidence of diabetes and high blood pressure the main causes of organ failure, donation rates are relatively low among Black and South Asian communities, thus reducing the chance of a successful match being found.

Therefore not only are members of these communities at higher risk of kidney failure, it is also harder to find a suitable donor and waiting lists are growing. Although living donor transplantation can help some of these patients, it is also essential to increase the number of people from these communities who are willing to donate organs after their death.

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