Since 1961, over 2 MILLION corneal transplants have been performed by EBAA member eye banks.
They ranged from newborns to senior citizens and came from all walks of life. Disease or injury damaged their corneas, the clear outside part of the eye, robbing them of their sight. Other treatment options failed, leaving transplantation their only hope to read a book, to drive a car, to enjoy a sunset or to watch their children grow up.
Their sight was restored because caring individuals donated their corneas after they died, providing the essential tissue for transplant – there are no artificial or man-made substitutes. Thankfully, over half the adult population in America are registered as donors.
You can transform the life of someone suffering from corneal blindness; register as an eye, organ and tissue donor, and let someone see life through your eyes.
Why should you be a donor?
- Age, gender, race and quality of sight are not factors in cornea donation.
- All major religions support eye, organ, and tissue donation.
- Most donors find joy knowing that they can save or improve the lives of others after they have died.
- Donor family members are comforted by the knowledge that their loved ones have contributed to the lives of others.
Facts about cornea donation
- Cornea transplants are successful 95-99% of the time.
- Nearly 50,000 corneas were transplanted in the U.S. last year; that many people would fill a baseball stadium.
- An additional 20,000 corneas were sent to surgeons overseas, where demand is even greater.
- Over 10 million men, women, and children around the world suffer corneal blindness. Most are in developing countries that lack the infrastructure to support donation and the eye banking process.
- U.S. eye banks also provided 26,000 corneas for research and education purposes, to find treatments and cures for eye diseases.
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As my body began to accept my donor’s cornea, I felt like I was watching a miracle occur from the inside out. Prior to my transplant I didn’t realize my children had freckles – now I could see them and I couldn’t stop staring! Before I just saw grass, but now I could see actual grass blades!
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Dr. Maisha Gray Diggs suffered from a progressive eye disease that caused her vision to be blurry and distorted, making daily tasks very difficult. She became legally blind at the age of 26, but her vision was restored thanks to a double-corneal transplant.