Expert Points out Barriers to Organ Transplantation in Vietnam

Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, chairwoman of the Organ Donation Promotion Association and former Minister of Health, has highlighted significant challenges in organ donation and transplantation in Vietnam, the Lao Dong (Labor) newspaper reported.

The registration rate for organ donation among Vietnamese people is the lowest in the world and the rate of organ donation after brain death is also the lowest, said Associate Professor Tien.

She added that the majority of organ transplant cases rely on living donors (7,902 cases, accounting for 95%), while the number of transplants from deceased donors is very limited (400 cases, accounting for 5%), which is contrary to global trends. She explained that the donation of organs while alive affects the quality of life for donors in the future and living donation is vulnerable to exploitation for illegal organ trading.

She emphasized the need to change perceptions about organ donation and transplantation, particularly from deceased donors, aiming to eliminate psychological, cultural, and spiritual barriers.

Professor Pham Gia Khanh, chairman of the Vietnam Organ Transplantation Association, noted that although Vietnam's organ transplant program began 40 years later than the rest of the world, it has rapidly caught up and even surpassed global standards.

Previously, only large hospitals such as Hospital 103, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital in Hanoi, Hue Central Hospital in Thua Thien-Hue province, and Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City could perform organ transplants. However, many provincial medical facilities now master the techniques of organ transplantation, saving lives of critically ill patients.

According to statistics from the National Coordination Center for Organ Transplantation, as of December 31, 2023, Vietnam had conducted a total of 8,302 organ transplant cases.

(Lao Dong)