The 2021 report from the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) reveals a troubling gender disparity in organ donation: 80% of organ recipients were men, while 75% of organ donors were women. Although men and women are equally likely to face medical conditions that require organ transplants, very few women actually seek or receive them. From 1995 to 2021, of the 36,640 people who received organ transplants in India, 29,695 were men. Meanwhile, 4 out of 5 living donors are women, and they are often wives and mothers who overwhelmingly take on this role.
More wives than husbands become living organ donors
Gender inequalities also affect organ donation between spouses. The Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh has one of the oldest renal transplant programs in India. Over the past decade, the percentage of spouse donors nearly doubled from 17.2% to 34.3%. At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, spousal donors represented 27.7% of living donor transplants. However, the most concerning data is that nearly 87% of all spousal donors are wives.
Wives often feel pressured to donate not just to their husbands but also to their in-laws. Even when not explicitly forced, societal expectations and ingrained biases push women into the role of donors. Just last month, a woman in Karnataka tragically died after donating 60% of her liver to her mother-in-law’s sister.
Gender disparity in organ donation: More from the data
The gender disparity in donation rates among spouses is exceptionally high for renal transplants. Specifically, 36% of wives who qualify as acceptable donors proceed to donate a kidney, compared to only 6.5% of husbands. Moreover, women make up 90% of spousal donors and 58.1% of first-degree relative donors.
This issue of gender disparity in organ donation is not limited to one country. A study of 631 living kidney donors in Switzerland summarised that 22% of the women donors were donating to their partners, while only 8% of male donors were doing the same. In the United States, wives being renal donors was twice as common as husbands. Similarly, data from Germany also shows that women are about twice as likely to donate to their husbands.
The ‘Breadwinner’ pressure
Men are the primary earners in most Indian families, and women in the family carry a sense of duty to ensure the health of the “breadwinner” and even donate organs if necessary. Moreover, the fear of losing income and financial instability subtly forces wives/mothers to consider organ donation as their ‘responsibility’. This expectation pushes women to donate organs to protect the well-being of the breadwinner, often at the expense of their own physical and emotional health.
Traditional gender roles in Indian families often prioritise men and male children over women. Many women willingly donate their organs to their husbands and sons. However, when a woman needs an organ transplant, she often relies on female relatives, like her sister, mother, or daughter. Especially during times of crisis or when a family member is suffering, society usually expects women to be nurturing and self-sacrificing.
Gender disparity in organ donation: The healthcare bias
The healthcare industry often unconsciously prioritises men over women for life-saving treatments like organ transplants. There are also apparent disparities in funding and research based on gender. For example, conditions like endometriosis, which only affects women, receive significantly less funding and research attention compared to other medical conditions that impact men.
Doctors often view women’s health differently from men’s, seeing women as more fragile. This biased belief causes fewer referrals for organ transplants for women or a decision that they aren’t healthy enough for the procedure. Studies also show that obese or diabetic women are less likely to be put on waiting lists for transplants compared to men with the same health issues. Gender disparities in organ donation affect children as well. Research shows that girls have poorer access to preemptive transplantation compared to boys.
The final thoughts
The glaring gender imbalance in organ donations is all a part of deep-rooted bias in how society views women. In a country like India, there is a general social expectation that women will be givers. We can pass strict laws to stop organ donation malpractice, but we’ll never fix gender disparity in donations until we finally decide to address our outdated social biases. The gender disparity among organ donors will not go away until we question the discrepancy in women versus male donors and recipients.
References:
BMJ 2002;325:851 More women than men become living organ donors
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are based on the writer’s insights, supported by data and resources available both online and offline, as applicable. Changeincontent.com is committed to promoting inclusivity across all forms of content, which we broadly define as media, policies, law, and history—encompassing all elements that influence the lives of women and gender-queer individuals. Our goal is to promote understanding and advocate for comprehensive inclusivity.
