[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 33 (Wednesday, March 3, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E323-E324]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        NATIONAL EYE DONOR MONTH

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                           HON. NITA M. LOWEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 3, 1999

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call to the attention of my 
colleagues and the public that March is National Eye Donor Month. 
National recognition of Eye Donor Month dates back to the very early 
days of transplantation, when corneas were the only human transplants. 
Now, transplantations are common medical procedures by which people may 
give so that others can live better, fuller, healthier lives.
  National Eye Donor Month honors the thousands of Americans who, over 
the past 55 years, have each left behind a priceless legacy--their 
eyes. Since the first transplant agency was founded in New York City in 
1944, sight has been restored to over half a million individuals by 
means of cornea transplantation.
  Eye Donor Month is also about increasing public awareness of the 
continuing need for donors. Many people are still unaware of how easy 
it is to become an eye donor. All a donor needs to do is sign a card 
and announce to his or her family the intent to leave behind this 
special gift.
  I am confident that if more Americans realized the true extent of the 
need for transplants, many more would willingly donate their corneas, 
once they can no longer use them. More than 40,000 Americans will need 
cornea transplants this year. Thousands of researchers will need donor 
eye tissue to explore prevention and treatment of blinding diseases.
  Understandably, most people do not like to think about their own 
deaths, nor discuss the matter with their families. As a result, they 
frequently put off signing their donor cards until it is too late. I 
hope that more people will instead follow the example of a young boy in 
my district, Nathan Sheinfeld of Scarsdale, NY. At age 9, Nathan became 
a living eye donor. When faced with the loss of his left eye after a 
golfing incident, one of his first thoughts was to ask if it could 
possibly be used by someone else. Only a few days after his accident, 
Nathan gave the gift of sight to a 53-year-old man.
  Thankfully, very few people lose their sight in such a tragic way. 
But we can all follow Nathan's example by promising to donate our

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eyes when we no longer need them. I encourage people to discuss this 
important issue with their families, as Nathan did. By arranging to 
donate his eye, this young boy has shown us that some good can result 
even from a tragic loss.
  Our nation's eye banks--non-profit agencies operating under the 
umbrella of the Eye Bank Association of America--have done a heroic job 
of restoring sight to blind people. Today, cornea transplantation is 
the most common transplant procedure performed, with an extremely high 
success rate of nearly 90 percent.
  This incredible success rate is due in part to a meticulous screening 
process which separates out corneas unsuitable for transplantation. 
These may be used for research purposes in surgical training and 
medical education. So, while each donated eye is put to good use, such 
a selective screening process must be supported by a large number of 
donations.
  Right now, there are simply not enough donors. We must change that. I 
want to encourage my colleagues to celebrate National Eye Donor Month 
by working closely with our Nation's eye banks to educate the American 
public about how they can help others to see. Let us all aim to 
increase the number of eyes available for transplantation, so that we 
may illuminate the darkness for so many of our fellow citizens.

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