Since 1998, Panama has recorded 1,079 kidney transplants, 109 liver transplants, 2,200 cornea transplants, 6 heart transplants, and 800 hematopoietic cell transplants.
Organ, tissue, and cell donation makes it possible to improve and save lives, which is why a call was made to the population to express their willingness to become voluntary donors and help provide a new opportunity at life to those who need it, explained the director of the Panamanian Transplant Organization, Janeth Ortega.
Ortega's statements were made during the XXVI Meeting of the Ibero-American Donation and Transplant Council/Network, which is being held in the country.
This is a gathering that seeks to strengthen donation and transplantation strategies and systems in the countries of Ibero-America.
The event is organized by the Panamanian Transplant Organization, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the Spanish National Transplant Organization.
Health Minister Fernando Boyd Galindo highlighted that Panama reaffirms its commitment to strengthening donation and transplantation systems through regional collaboration, respect for the wishes of donors and their families, and equitable, transparent, and timely access to these services.
The minister emphasized, in an institutional press release, that donation must remain a voluntary, altruistic, and solidarity-based act, free from any form of organ exploitation or trafficking.
Likewise, he thanked…
AI Brief
Your highlights
A gloved hand holds a detailed 3D model of vital human organs, representing medical advances in transplants and surgical simulation in a modern, clean hospital setting. (Infobae illustrative image)
Since 1998, Panama has recorded 1,079 kidney transplants, 109 liver transplants, 2,200 cornea transplants, 6 heart transplants, and 800 hematopoietic cell transplants. The donation of organs, tissues, and cells makes it possible to improve and save lives, which is why a call was made to the population to express their willingness to become voluntary donors and help provide a new opportunity at life to those who need it, explained the director of the Panamanian Transplant Organization, Janeth Ortega.
Ortega's statements were made during the XXVI Meeting of the Ibero-American Donation and Transplant Network/Council, which is being held in the country. This is a gathering that seeks to strengthen donation and transplant strategies and systems in Ibero-American countries. The event is organized by the Panamanian Transplant Organization, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the National Transplant Organization of Spain.
The XXVI Meeting of the Ibero-American Donation and Transplant Network/Council is being held in Panama. (Minsa)
Fernando Boyd Galindo, Minister of Health, highlighted that Panama reaffirms its commitment to strengthening donation and transplant systems through regional collaboration, respect for the wishes of donors and their families, and equitable, transparent, and timely access to these services.
The minister emphasized, in an institutional press release, that donation must remain a voluntary, altruistic, and solidarity-based act, free from any form of exploitation or organ trafficking. Likewise, he thanked the Panamanian Transplant Organization, PAHO, the National Transplant Organization of Spain, and all the participating delegations for making this gathering possible.
The Ibero-American Donation and Transplant Network/Council is made up of representatives from 19 Latin American countries, as well as Spain and Portugal. Its objective is to define strategies and action plans to strengthen the legal frameworks, structures, and organization of organ, tissue, and cell donation and transplant systems.
The meeting was attended by Andrea Villalobos, representing the Pan American Health Organization and the World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) in Panama, and Beatriz Domínguez-Gil González, general director of the National Transplant Organization of Spain and president of the Ibero-American Donation and Transplant Network/Council.
A human kidney is shown suspended inside a cryopreservation chamber in a modern laboratory, displaying a technological advance in organ preservation for transplants. (Infobae illustrative image)
On the regulatory front, the country has progressed from pioneering regulations such as Law 10 of 1983 on organ implantation, through Law 52 of 1995, culminating in Law 3 of 2010, which creates the Panamanian Transplant Organization and establishes clear principles of gratuitousness, voluntariness, and solidarity in the donation of anatomical components.
On the operational front, official figures reflect sustained activity: between 1998 and 2026, approximately 4,194 organ, tissue, and cell transplants have been performed, with a predominance of cornea and kidney procedures, demonstrating both the installed capacity and a partial response to growing demand. At the same time, Panama is positioning itself as a regional reference center for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, thanks to more than 400 procedures performed by the Social Security Fund since 2000.
However, authorities indicate that these advances coexist with persistent challenges, including the prevalence of myths and misinformation that hinder donation, the need to strengthen legal frameworks regarding deceased donors, and the urgency of ensuring that equity and transparency translate into concrete practices in waiting lists and organ allocation.
The donation and transplantation of organs, tissues, and cells have become, in Panama and throughout Ibero-America, a central tool for addressing chronic and acute diseases that have no equivalent therapeutic alternative, particularly chronic kidney disease (CKD), terminal liver disease, certain heart conditions, corneal pathologies, and various malignant and non-malignant hematological diseases.