04/24/2026
In Virginia, 2 people die every week while waiting for an organ donation. A successful transplant depends on how well we can protect the donated organ while it travels from the donor (the person who gave an organ) to the patient.
Our new organ transplant technology addresses two challenges:
🔵 The Sleeping Organ Problem: When an organ is placed in traditional cold storage, its metabolism slows down almost completely. While this preserves it, the organ is essentially "off." This means we can’t see how well the organ is working until it is already inside the patient.
🟢 The Ice Bite Problem: Delicate organs are very sensitive to temperature. Traditional cold storage can be inconsistent. Failure to keep an even temperature can cause "overcooling" injuries, similar to frostbite.
Read more about how this UVA Transplant technology helps us keep organs healthier on their way to a recipient: https://bit.ly/4tp8GBw