About Cornea Donation

By pledging to become an eye donor upon your death, you are a hero to the thousands and thousands people in the U.S. who will need a cornea transplant this year. When someone loses his or her eyesight to a corneal disease or eye injury, a donor’s gift can rescue that person from a lifetime of blindness.

Almost anyone can share the gift of sight. Your gender, blood type, age and race don’t affect your ability to donate. Neither should the diagnosis of cancer, diabetes or poor vision. The only step you need to take is to join the donor registry in your state.

Join Your State’s Eye, Tissue & Organ Donor Registry

The easiest way to pledge to become an eye donor is to add your name to your state’s donor registry either online or at your local DMV. An eye, organ and tissue donor registry is a simple and confidential way to make your wishes about donation known to your family after you’re gone.

All three states in the Saving Sight service region have first-person donor registries, meaning your choice to donate will be legally binding. This removes the burden from your family during a difficult and heartbreaking time in their lives. In addition, the registries allow you to choose which organs and tissue you wish to donate, and you have the opportunity to remove yourself from the list if you change your mind.

• Missouri – www.donatelifemissouri.com
• Illinois – www.donatelifeillinois.org
• Kansas – www.donatelifekansas.com

If you live outside of our service area and wish to find a registry in your state, please visit the Donate Life America website.

Talk to Your Family About Eye Donation

Another important step in making your decision to become an eye donor is letting your family know about your wishes, even if you join a first-person donor registry. By informing them of your pledge ahead of time, there will be no question of your decision upon your passing.

In cases where an individual has not joined the organ and tissue donor registry, the next of kin will be asked to give the final consent for donation upon death. If your family knows of your wishes ahead of time, it will be easier for them to give consent, which helps to save the sight of up to two people in need.

The Cornea Donation Process

The Human Eye

The cornea is the clear outer window of the eye that covers the iris and pupil, allowing light into the eye. It is the part of the eye most commonly transplanted. In addition, the sclera, or white of the eye, can be donated and used in other surgeries as well, such as the rebuilding of an eardrum to restore hearing.

Referral & Initial Screening for Eye Donation

When a death occurs, the hospital or related medical facility places a call to one of three organ procurement organizations in Saving Sight’s tri-state area (Missouri, Kansas and Illinois). The organ procurement organization, in turn, relays information to our Donor Services Center (DSC). After gathering initial information, the organizations work together to determine if the person had registered as an eye, organ and tissue donor and if they meet initial screening requirements to become a donor.

When authorization for donation has been determined, the DSC consults medical records and conducts a medical and social history interview with a member of the donor’s family.

Eye Tissue Recovery

Since eye tissue must be recovered within 24 hours of a patient’s death, Saving Sight has technicians on-call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. When Saving Sight determines that the tissue is likely to be suitable for transplantation, the technician performs an in situ procedure to gently remove the cornea. The cornea is immediately placed in preservation media so it can be safely transported and stored until transplant.

A blood sample is also taken from the donor during the tissue retrieval. The sample is then sent out for testing to detect the presence of infectious diseases like HIV or Hepatitis B or C. All blood samples are tested prior to distribution to eliminate the threat of infectious disease.

Corneal Tissue Evaluation & Processing

At Saving Sight’s Kansas City laboratory, the donated corneal tissue is further evaluated for possible transplantation. A high cell count within the cornea is desirable and indicative of healthier tissue. Our lab staff also further process the tissue for the type of corneal transplant that it will be used for. In some cases, the cornea will be used for a traditional transplant where the donor cornea replaces the full thickness of the recipient’s cornea. In other cases, a transplant technique is used where only a thin layer of cells is transplanted. 

Corneal Tissue Distribution

After a cornea has been cleared for transplant, Saving Sight’s Client Services Team meets a corneal surgeon’s needs by offering tissue for transplant. All corneal tissue is first offered to surgeons in our three-state region before being distributed nationally and then internationally. Although corneas can be stored for up to two weeks, U.S. physicians usually prefer to transplant donor tissue within five days of retrieval.

We also provide corneas and eye tissue to research teams and educational and training facilities.