About Organ Allocation

Matching Organs *
The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) maintains a centralized computer network, UNetSM, which links all organ procurement organizations(OPOs) and transplant centers.

Waiting for an Organ *
Most candidates, except those with living donors, wait for an organ due to the shortage of donor organs. Because each candidate's situation is unique, waiting times can vary, depending on a number of factors, such as those described in this section.

Organ Allocation Policies *
UNOS member organizations, transplant candidates, recipients and donor family members work together to develop organ allocation policies that give every transplant candidate an opportunity at receiving the organ they need.


U.S. Waiting List Candidates by Organ & Gender

The chart below shows the total number of candidates waiting for each type of organ.

54 1296 96 6820 808 33638 687 1027 46 818 134 10088 840 46492 1977 1329

Based on current OPTN data as reported on April 25, 2008. Data subject to change based on future data submission or correction. Totals may be less than the sums due to patients included in multiple categories.
Related Topics

UNOS maintains the national transplant waiting list. Visit www.unos.org to find out who UNOS is, what we do, and what services we can offer you.