Never before have so many tissues been donated in Germany as last year. Although there were no more approvals in percentage terms than in 2024, the number of reports, educational discussions and thus also of people who donated tissue was noticeably higher than in 2024. 9,640 patients were provided with a transplant from the network of the non-profit German Society for Tissue Transplantation (DGFG ). This is an increase of 15.2% compared to the previous year – also a record figure.

For the first time, the DGFG received more than 60,000 reports from potential tissue donors from more than 320 different institutions. More than 12,000 educational discussions on tissue donation were held in 2025 with relatives and relatives of the deceased, with consent to donation in 4,585 cases. At 37.9%, the approval rate was only slightly below the previous year’s level after a downward trend in the past 3 years, with a minus of 0.2% compared to 2024.

Of 4,188 removals carried out, 4,070 people donated their corneas after their death. In 2025, 6,370 corneal transplants prepared in the tissue bank were referred to eye clinics for surgery, enabling patients to preserve or regain their eyesight. This corresponds to an increase of 16% compared to the previous year. And yet there is still a shortage of corneas and other tissues.

However, the shortage of heart valves is particularly striking: 84.4% of these were removed as part of an organ donation, when the entire heart was medically unsuitable for an organ transplant. Their number is therefore related to the organ donations carried out in Germany. This year, 472 heart valves were donated in the DGFG network, 18.3% more than in 2024. Nevertheless, the DGFG was only able to meet less than half of the requests, which illustrates the importance of expanding donation programs after cardiovascular death.

Editor: X-Press Journalistenbüro GbR

Gender Notice. The personal designations used in this text always refer equally to female, male and diverse persons. Double/triple naming and gendered designations are used for better readability. ected.