Public

The little boy in his buggy beamed happily when I asked him what he was most looking forward to after he got his new kidney. ‘Cheese sandwiches!’ he shouted immediately. And then after a few seconds further thought “And going swimming!’ 

He was on dialysis with kidney failure. His dad was about to donate a kidney in the hope that his son could enjoy both those things and have the chance of a normal healthy life. I met them in my role as an Independent Assessor for the Human Tissue Authority (HTA). 

On December 1 2015, Wales became the first country in the UK to implement a ‘soft opt-out’ system for organ donation. Earlier this year we learnt that this has significantly increased consent rates for deceased donation when compared with England. At the time of the law change consent rates in Wales were the lowest in the UK (less than 50%). Now they are the highest by some distance (77% compared with 67% for the rest of the UK).

Our Head of Communications Mat Silk explains how the little things can be so important when dealing with human tissue and remains.

Professor Andy Hall, a member of our board, explains what needs to be considered before setting up a biobank.

I generally cite this Powell and Pressburger / Archer Films classic (starring the wonderful David Niven) as my favourite film. But this isn’t a film review, so why mention it here? Let’s see.