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3 clusters · 10 sources · 33 days · First seen · Last updated

Transplant and donor registry developments in Romania

Overview

Medical efforts to support transplant patients in Romania have focused on both expanding domestic donor registries and utilizing international cooperation.

The National Registry of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Donors in Romania has grown to over 114,000 participants, having facilitated 696 transplants over 14 years. However, officials report that approximately 30% of patients fail to find compatible donors in international registries, prompting calls for higher local registration rates to leverage regional genetic similarities. Traian Laurian Arghisan, director of the institution, emphasized that more than 5% of the Romanian population should be registered to improve success rates. To support this, the Regional Institute of Oncology Iași is launching a recruitment campaign targeting healthy individuals between 18 and 45.

Cross-border cooperation continues to facilitate organ transplants. Following a 2021 memorandum between Bulgaria and Romania, a Bulgarian donor from Veliko Tarnovo provided organs that enabled two kidney transplants and one liver transplant for Romanian citizens at the Fundeni Clinical Institute.

Domestically, organ donation rates in Romania have shown signs of recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Guenady Vatachi, head of the National Transplant Agency, noted that in 2025, organ removals rose to 91, a 10% increase compared to the 83 removals recorded in the post-pandemic period. Recent domestic donations between October 15 and 19 enabled 12 transplants across facilities in Sibiu, Bucharest, and Cluj-Napoca.

Entities

Romania · Bucharest University Emergency Hospital · Sibiu County Emergency Hospital · Traian Laurian Arghisan · Fundeni Clinical Institute

Timeline

  1. [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Romania reports 12 transplants from three organ donors

    Three organ donors in Romania enabled 12 transplants across Sibiu and Bucharest, marking a continued upward trend in organ donation rates following the pandemic.

  2. [HEALTH] 6 sources
    Bulgarian organ donor saves three lives in Romania

    A 54-year-old Bulgarian woman's organs were donated to three Romanian patients, involving two kidney and one liver transplant via a bilateral cooperation agreement.

  3. [HEALTH] 2 sources
    Romania stem cell donor registry exceeds 114,000 participants

    Romania's stem cell donor registry has surpassed 114,000 members, but officials urge more registrations to help the 30% of patients who cannot find compatible matches in international databases.

Sources

clinica.bg · fakti.bg · formaremedicala.ro · friss.ro · maszol.ro · plovdiv24.bg · radioiasi.ro · tarnovonews.com · tritegrada.eu · viaranews.com

This summary has been updated 1 time: see revision history