transplant surgery
transplant surgeryHODS

The heart, lungs, liver and kidneys of an 8-year-old Arab boy were transplanted into four Jewish children. The boy's father said: "It’s as if he’s still living."

A week ago, eight-year-old Anwar Abu-Arar from the Israeli-Arab town of Kalansua, east of Netanya, was hit by a car on a busy street near his home.  Though doctors labored to save his life, a two-doctor committee determined after several days that Anwar had suffered respiratory brain death. His father was asked if he would agree to donate Anwar’s organs, and he immediately agreed.

Four transplant operations were then carried out in Shneider Children's Hospital in Petach Tikvah.  The heart and lungs were transplanted into an 8-year-old girl suffering from a rare condition of high blood pressure in the lungs, which had caused a malfunction of her heart. She had been waiting a year for a new heart.

The liver was given to an 11-year-old boy suffering from a malignant growth in his liver related to a congenital metabolic disease.  Finally, Anwar’s kidneys were given to two little girls aged 4 and 5.

“The doctors worked night and day to save Anwar,” his father told Ynet, “but when that did not work and they determined that he was brain dead, I agreed to give his organs. If my son can save another child, it’s as if he is still living – and I was happy that he was able to save four children.”

Ynet reports that ever since it began an organ-donor awareness program, the number of people signing ADI cards permitting their organs to be donated has risen significantly.  In 2008, a record number of people signed – 65,749.  Tamar Ashkenazi, director of the National Organ Transplant Center, said “at least 70% of the ADI card signatories came to us through the Ynet program,” Ynet reported.

In 2008, 256 organ transplants occurred in Israel, 11 more than two years before.  The year 2007 saw a sharp drop, to 172, compared with 204 in 2005 and 187 in 2004.

For information on donating organs in keeping with Jewish Law, visit the Halachic Organ Donor society site.