Cadaver kidney transplantation and the nationwide donor-organ coordination system in Turkey

Today, kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for ESRD. The Baskent University Transplantation Center has performed an average of 50 kidney transplantations per year for 25 years. At the end of 2001, the 5-year graft survival rate for our living-donor kidney grafts exceeded 80%, and the corresponding figure for cadaveric grafts was approximately 50%. Still, the ever-increasing demand for renal transplantation means that the number of patients on waiting lists far surpasses the number of operations performed. We are unable to use to our center to its full capacity because of this serious organ shortage. It is our hope that the newly established National Coordinating Center will help Turkey take significant steps toward reducing this problem in the near future.