SCOTLAND is making “real progress” on organ donation as the number of people signed up to the NHS Donor Register approaches 50 per cent, it is claimed.

Almost 2.4 million people have joined the official list, amounting to around 45 per cent of the country’s population. The figures were released yesterday as it emerged that the number of patients living in Scotland whose lives were saved or improved by an organ transplant has reached a record high.

Meanwhile, the number of those waiting for such an operation has fallen to the lowest ever level.

Welcoming the changes yesterday, Public Health Minister Aileen Campbell said: “This is fantastic news and shows the real progress we’re making on organ donation.”

The changes follow high-profile campaigns urging Scots to help more people struggling with debilitating and fatal conditions. There were 133 deceased organ donors in the country’s hospitals in 2016-17, compared to just 99 the previous year.

The figures equate to a donor rate of 24.8 per million of population – the highest in the UK. Their generosity aided 348 people, making for the highest number of transplants the country’s medics have ever carried out.

Meanwhile, living donors provided kidneys for 82 patients and the number of liver donations reached 116, the highest number yet recorded in one year.

Information provided by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) also show the number of people in Scotland waiting for a transplant dropped to the lowest on record.

Campbell said: “An increase in deceased donor numbers of 34 per cent is not only really positive news for people waiting for a transplant, it puts us ahead of our target in progressing to reach 26 deceased donors per million of population by 2020.

“And it means that more Scottish residents than ever before received a life-changing transplant, although we know that there is still more to do to ensure that as many people as possible can receive the transplants they need.”

The Scottish Government launched a consultation on moves to increase the number of organ and tissue donors in December. Respondents were asked to share their position on a range of measures, including the introduction of a soft opt-out system which would presume consent. The change could see organs removed from a dead person unless they had registered or expressed an objection during their life.

Yesterday Campbell said: “Our consultation on a soft op-out system closed recently and the responses are currently being independently analysed.

“We have a presumption in favour and will be setting out our next steps in the coming months.”

As well as completed donations in 2016-17, another 39 families agreed to allow their loved one’s organs to be used to help another. However, in these cases the process was not able to be carried out.

The Scottish Government said a “significant number” of deceased donors had been unable to give their organs, but had allowed doctors to use tissues including the eyes, heart valves and tendons in a range of procedures.

Acknowledging the difficult decision made by families of the deceased and the work of hospital staff, Campbell said: “We must always be mindful that most organ and tissue donation can only occur as a result of tragic circumstances and I’d like to thank every donor and their family who made the selfless decision to donate their organs or tissue and enabled others to live and transform their lives.

“I’m also very grateful to staff across the NHS in Scotland who work tirelessly to ensure that people’s donation wishes are respected and that every donation counts.”

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CASE STUDY: 'MY BODY HAD JUST GIVEN UP'

TEACHER Heather Marshall is amongst those to receive life-saving transplants last year.

The 40-year-old got the call in November, just three weeks after her name was added to the list of waiting patients.

Until then, the North Lanarkshire woman spent one year managing her liver condition primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) with medication. However, her health went into rapid decline in October, leaving her struggling for breath and unable to lie down due to the risk of fluid filling her lungs.

The National:

Heather (pictured), from Gartcosh, said: “I was relieved and excited when I got the call. I knew I wasn’t well and that I didn’t have long without a transplant, but it was such a conflict of emotion. You’re so aware that to get that chance of life, something awful had to happen to someone else.

“I’d always been on the NHS Organ Donor Register and I think it felt easier to accept that gift, knowing I would be happy to do the same for someone else.

“You never expect that this kind of thing will happen to you or someone you know so organ donation isn’t something that’s top of your mind. I understand it’s not for everybody, but I would encourage people to think about it and make their wishes known.

“I know that without my transplant I wouldn’t be here now. I got married just after my diagnosis, and because of my donor I have a future. I’ll never stop being grateful for that.”

On her previous health problems, the primary teacher said: “I had no energy, didn’t feel great and my skin had started to become jaundiced. I struggled with infections to my bile ducts which resulted in me being referred to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh to be assessed for a transplant.

“I was shocked at how ill I looked. I’d been working up until that point, but as soon as I stopped it was like my body had just given up.

“I knew that a transplant would be necessary at some point as it’s the only real treatment for PSC, but I had no idea it would happen so quickly. I went from being someone who worked full-time to someone who could barely function in a few short months. As well as the physical limitations, it was mentally very difficult.”