Record-Breaking Year for Organ & Tissue Donation: Celebrating Growth and Saving Lives 

Region’s organ donors increase by 15% year-over-year, ahead of national average 

MINNEAPOLIS – LifeSource, the organ procurement organization serving the Upper Midwest, proudly announces a record-breaking year in organ and tissue donation, resulting in 797 more lives saved by local organ donors and thousands more healed through tissue donation – the most in a single year since the organization’s founding in 1989.

• Organ Donors (Legacies Created): 256 – a 15% increase over 2022 
• Organs Transplanted (Lives Saved): 797 – a 5% increase over 2022 
• Tissue Donors: 897 tissue donors and 843 Musculoskeletal (MS) Donors, benefiting an estimated 130,500+ lives 

LifeSource credits its remarkable growth in 2023 to process innovations; the team’s above-and-beyond dedication to maximizing every opportunity; stronger relationships with key process partners; creative problem-solving and commitment to continued improvement.  

“The growth and outcomes we have achieved represent people – individuals who are now celebrating bonus time with their families – thanks to the selflessness of donors and the advancements in organ transplantation,” shares Kelly White, LifeSource Chief Executive Officer. “Each organ transplanted equals a life saved, and every additional seat at the table is a testament to the impact of organ donation.” 

Here are highlights from 2023:  

• LifeSource, Mayo Clinic and M Health Fairview Establish “Donor Care Units.” High-tech, specialized intensive care units will increase lives saved through deceased organ donation in Upper Midwest. In fall 2023, our teams collaborated on 20 successful transfers from 12 donor hospitals to the region’s donor care units.  
• 1,200+ Tribal Id Card Registrations in First Year, Increasing Area’s Registrations by 200%. Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa hosted a “Let’s Celebrate & Educate” donation education event, marking the 1-year anniversary of Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa becoming the first tribe in the country to add organ donation registration to their tribal identification documents. 
• Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute awarded 5-year National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant, in partnership with LifeSource, to study a Learning Health System model that could improve community trust and reduce persistent disparities in donation and transplantation. 

The transplant waiting list underscores the importance for LifeSource to do more to continue to increase donation and the number of lives saved each year. The vision is clear: every donation opportunity is turned into a life-saving gift. We are dedicated to promoting fair and equitable access to donation and transplantation, regardless of background or circumstance. 

LifeSource looks forward to building on this success and continuing the journey towards a world where organ donation is not just a choice but a universal legacy of compassion and life-saving generosity. 

For media inquiries, please contact:  

 Sarah Sonn, Communications Director 
415-806-1467; ssonn@life-source.org   

About Organ Donation: Facts & Statistics 

• Organ donation is extremely rare. Only 1 percent of people who die get the opportunity to give those gifts. That’s due to a variety of medical and circumstantial criteria, including passing away at a hospital on ventilated support. 
• It takes many people working in concert to make the donation process happen in a short period of time. Watch this video to learn more about the donation process.

• One person can save eight lives by donating organs; heal more than 75 lives by recovering tissue and restore sight for up to 10 individuals through eye donation. 

About LifeSource  

LifeSource is the non-profit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye and tissue donation in the Upper Midwest, serving more than seven million people in communities across Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. LifeSource promotes donation in our communities through the Donate Life brand. We are relentlessly pursuing a day when no one dies waiting for a life-saving transplant. Learn more at Life-source.org. 

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