Why Most Donor Organs Don’t Travel Far — And Why That Matters

Written By David Campbell

In the popular imagination, organ transplants involve dramatic, cross-country races against the clock—hearts flown coast to coast, lungs packed into ice aboard private planes. While this makes for gripping headlines and high-stakes storytelling, it doesn’t reflect how most organ transplants actually happen in the United States.

In fact, most donor organs don’t travel far at all. And for companies focused on healthcare logistics, transplant infrastructure, or preservation technology, that insight carries serious strategic weight.

Dispelling the Distance Myth

The common belief is that donor organs routinely travel hundreds—or thousands—of miles. But in practice, the U.S. transplant system—managed by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS)—is designed to prioritize local and regional matches over national ones.

Key facts:

  • Organs are allocated first to candidates within a defined geographic radius (often 250 nautical miles).

  • Time-sensitive viability windows mean local matches are almost always more viable.

  • Proximity is baked into the system for medical, logistical, and equity reasons.

So despite the perception of cross-country journeys, the vast majority of organs remain in-region—and often within the same state.

When Organs Do Travel Far

Exceptions do occur, especially in cases involving:

  • Pediatric patients

  • Rare blood types or high immunologic sensitivity

  • National status emergencies (e.g., urgent liver failure)

  • Unutilized organs in regions with lower waitlist demand

These are edge cases, not the norm—and treating them as the core problem risks misdirecting innovation and investment.

Why This Matters

For developers, this changes the question from:

“How can we ship organs faster across the country?”

to:

“How can we make sure organs arrive in better condition—no matter how far they go?”

That’s where advanced organ preservation becomes crucial. And that’s also where the needs of the customer—OPOs and transplant centers—intersect with the value proposition.

🏥 Customer Perspective: OPOs and Transplant Centers

👥 Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs)

OPOs are responsible for:

  • Recovering organs

  • Coordinating logistics

  • Maximizing organ utilization

Their core challenges:

  • Organ wastage due to time or quality degradation

  • Transportation delays

  • Pressure to reduce discard rates and meet federal performance benchmarks

What OPO leaders want:

  • Predictable, controlled preservation

  • Solutions that allow more flexible logistics

  • Tools that improve organ condition on arrival, especially for marginal or extended-criteria donors

"With better preservation, we have more confidence to accept and place organs we otherwise might decline."
— OPO Clinical Director, Midwest region

🏨 Transplant Centers

Transplant teams need:

  • Organs that arrive in optimal condition

  • Consistency across different donor hospitals and OPOs

  • Confidence in accepting “non-perfect” organs

Their biggest pain point:

  • Organs that look viable on paper but arrive damaged or delayed

  • Lack of visibility into preservation conditions during transit

“We’ve turned down too many offers due to uncertainty in transport quality. If the organ isn’t predictable, the risk is too high.”
— Transplant Surgeon, Academic Medical Center

Investor takeaway: The problem isn’t just travel distance—it’s the lack of trust in the chain of custody and quality assurance from donor to recipient.

Why Better Preservation Beats Greater Distance

Traditional cold storage (ice in a cooler) is outdated. While it’s simple, it offers little control over:

  • Temperature stability

  • Oxygen delivery

  • Transport time flexibility

Advanced technologies like hypothermic temperature control and persufflation (oxygenating organs during storage) are game-changers.

✅ Hypothermic Temperature Control

  • Maintains precise, stable low temperatures

  • Prevents damage from temperature fluctuations

  • Standardizes transport conditions

✅ Persufflation (Gaseous Oxygen Perfusion)

  • Keeps organs oxygenated at the cellular level

  • Reduces ischemia-related damage

  • Improves viability, especially for marginal or long-transport case

These tools have the potential to:

  • Extend usable preservation windows

  • Reduce organ discard rates

  • Allow for more consistent acceptance decisions by transplant teams

Net effect: Better preserved organs mean more transplants, better outcomes, and reduced waste.

A Smarter System, Not Just a Faster One

While a small subset of organs may require national transport, the real opportunity is in smarter preservation, not simply faster or longer-range logistics.

Advanced preservation:

  • Supports local and regional networks more reliably

  • Increases confidence among surgeons to accept more offers

  • Aligns with OPO goals to reduce waste and improve efficiency

  • Helps transplant centers reduce delays and improve patient outcomes

For investors, this is a scalable innovation with clear, systemic demand.

Conclusion: Why This Should Be on Your Radar

If you're evaluating opportunities in healthcare logistics, biotech, or transplant technology, remember this:

  • Most donor organs don’t go far.

  • Most transplant centers want more confidence, not more distance.

  • OPOs need preservation tools that improve placement, not pressure.

Technologies like hypothermic control and persufflation are not only medically superior—they're strategically aligned with how the system actually works.

This isn’t just about innovation for innovation’s sake. It’s about de-risking a broken link in the transplant supply chain—and creating durable value for everyone involved.

David Campbell
Next

Organ Preservation Is Ripe for Investment — Here’s Why