CUMBRIANS are being urged to sign up as organ donors in a bid to help the 45 people across the county who are in need of a transplant.
Across the UK, 6,500 people are desperately waiting for a transplant and in the last five years, 22 people in Cumbria have died waiting for one.
However in the last five years, thanks to people signing up, 129 people across Cumbria have survived by having a life-changing transplant.
Sally Johnson, NHS Blood and Transplant Director of Organ Donation and Transplantation said: "It’s a terrible shame that so many people who want to save lives through organ donation have not taken the next, simple step to register that decision.
"We all have busy lives, yet most of us would admit that we still find ourselves whiling time away and delaying doing important things. Signing up to the NHS Organ Donor Register is one thing we know people often just haven’t got around to doing.
"This Christmas, we are asking everyone who supports organ donation to take just a few minutes of their online time to show that support by joining the NHS Organ Donor Register."
To find out more about how you can get on the register, visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk.
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