Luxembourg promotes a digital organ donation system

For World Organ Donation Day, which is celebrated annually on 17 October, the Luxembourg Ministry of Health and Social Protection is recalling the importance of expressing the will of citizens in a timely and clear manner. As emphasised by Minister Martine Deprez, organ donation is an act of solidarity that can save a life.

Every resident can now declare their consent or refusal to posthumous donation directly in the DSP system - this decision becomes legally binding and is subject to a doctor's review before any organ removal procedure. If no information is available in the system, the responsibility for the decision falls to the deceased's proxy.

In 2024, 7 organ donors were registered in Luxembourg - the same number as in 2023. Thanks to these people, 22 organs were successfully transplanted under the international Eurotransplant system. At the same time, 104 patients were waiting for a transplant abroad, of whom 48 were on the list for the first time. Only 36 people from Luxembourg actually received the necessary transplants - all at partner clinics abroad.

The figures show a shortage of donors: hundreds of people in need, dozens of transplants - and only 7 people who agreed to donate after death. Meanwhile, under the law in place since 1982, if a person has not expressed a refusal while alive, they are considered a potential donor. But it is the digital declaration through the DSP that helps remove uncertainty and facilitate decision-making for doctors and families at critical moments.