Number of patients on organ transplant waiting list in the Netherlands 2017-2019

In 2019, 2,251 patients were on the kidney transplant waiting list in the Netherlands. This figure is an increase from the number waiting for a kidney in the year before which stood at 2,194. The number of patients needing liver, lung or heart transplants has increased in the country since 2017.

Dutch transplant activity

There were 55.6 kidney transplant procedures per million population in the Netherlands in 2019, a slight decrease from 2018 when the rate was 58.4. Kidney transplant procedures were the most carried out procedure in the Netherlands, followed by liver transplantations at 11.1 per million and then lung transplants at 6.1 per million population. There were 118 deaths on the transplant waiting list in the Netherlands in 2019, 67 of which were waiting for a kidney transplant.

Rate compared to rest of Europe

The rate of kidney transplants in the Netherlands was the joint-second highest in the European Union in 2019. Spain was top of the rankings at 73.8 kidney transplants per million population, and France also had a rate of 55.6.