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.

46 1130 100 6519 759 36786 797 1072 29 749 138 9935 752 51821 2281 1209

Based on current OPTN data as reported on January 29, 2010. 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.