KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — Frustrated by the long wait for potential donor matches, many Malaysians in need of organ transplants have resorted to travelling to countries like India and China to search for donors, the Health Ministry said today.
In a written reply to Sibuti MP Ahmad Lai Bujang today, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said that although the past two years has seen an increase in donors here, the number of patients has also notably risen.
Ahmad Lai had asked Dr Subramaniam to state the number of organ donors in the country, and the waiting period for needy patients to receive organs.
“This situation has caused many to fly overseas such as to China and India to undergo organ transplant surgeries.
“However, this practise is not encouraged as the real identity of donors are unknown, and we suspect that those from low socioeconomic backgrounds are exploited (to donate organs),” Dr Subramaniam added.
Dr Subramaniam said that as at January 31 this year, there were 19,895 patients on the waiting list for organ donors.
Of this, 19,871 are kidney failure patients, 10 suffer from hepatic problems, six heart patients, three who are in need of new lungs and five who are in need of both heart and lungs.
