Oxford doctor cites Covid for transplant waiting list rise

Mr Sanjay Sinha, a consultant surgeon, said the impact of Covid was still being felt

A senior doctor has said that Covid played a major part in making organ transplant waiting lists grow longer.

Mr Sanjay Sinha, a consultant surgeon at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, said transplant waiting lists in Oxfordshire have doubled in four years.

He said the county had felt the impact of growing waiting times for vital organs, with more than 7,000 people on the UK waiting list.

"One donor can save up to nine lives," he said.

"We've just come through a pandemic which was unprecedented in our lifetime and it did have an impact on our transplant numbers."

Covid also impacted the living donation programme, which had been temporarily suspended during the height of the pandemic due to the lack of clarity around transmission risk and for the safety of both recipients and donors.

More than 7,000 people are waiting for a transplant in the UK

Despite this, there has been a 5% transplant increase in the past year, which Mr Sinha said was vital to saving lives.

In 2020 the law in the UK changed so all adults in England are now considered potential organ donors, unless they choose to opt out or are in one of the excluded groups.

Mr Sinha said: "There are missed opportunities - only 1% of people who die have the potential to save lives."

Last year more than 430 people died while waiting for a transplant.

'Very difficult'

Dan Sheridan was among those on the waiting list and is now celebrating six weeks since he underwent a liver transplant after being diagnosed with advanced liver disease in 2020.

He said receiving the transplant felt like he had "won the lottery".

"During Covid it was very difficult because these procedures weren't available," he added.

"All organs outlive the owner - I'm alive because someone else isn't."

Now, Mr Sheridan said thanks to his transplant he feels warmer and his appetite has returned.

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