Why we need to focus on the gender disparity in organ transplantation
A significant gender disparity exists in organ transplantation in India, where women are disproportionately represented as living donors while men receive the majority of transplants. Sociocultural expectations and traditional family structures continue to drive this imbalance, placing the burden of care and donation on women.
Why it matters
Highlighting this inequality is essential for addressing systemic healthcare biases and ensuring equitable access to life-saving medical procedures.
Gender disparity in organ transplantation is a global problem affecting each step of the transplantation process, from organ donation, recipient listing, waiting times and access, to post-transplant outcomes. This inequality is most visibly expressed in the overrepresentation of women as living donors, while men continue to be the majority of transplant recipients.
India’s case is a particularly striking example of this gender imbalance. Women constitute the majority of living organ donors, but men get the majority of transplants. As per recent data from the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), between 2019 and 2023, 63.8% of living organ donors were women and 69.8% of transplant recipients were men.
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