World Organ Donation Day: highlighting the importance of organ donation

To mark World Organ Donation Day, celebrated every year on 17 October, the Ministry of Health and Social Security, in collaboration with Luxembourg Transplant, the organisation responsible for managing organ donation and transplants in Luxembourg, is highlighting the vital importance of organ donation in saving lives and stepping up its public awareness activities.

“Organ donation offers a second chance. It can save lives, but it can also help many people regain their independence and mobility, and give them hope for a better future,” emphasises Martine Deprez, Minister of Health and Social Security.

As part of these activities, Luxembourg Transplant is organising its traditional “Indoor Cycling” event on 11 October 2026 at LuxExpo The Box. The event aims to bring together around 1,500 participants in support of organ donation. For this 17th edition, Luxembourg Transplant aims to enter the Guinness World Records in support of the cause.

Martine Deprez, Minister of Health and Social Security, Martine Hansen, Minister of Sport, Max Hahn, Minister for Family Affairs, Solidarity, Living Together and Reception of Refugees, and Dr Jean-Claude Schmit, Director of Health, will be present between 10 am and 4.30 pm to support the initiative and meet participants.

Event details:

Date: 11 October 2026

Venue: LuxExpo The Box – Hall 7 (South entrance), 10 Circuit de la Foire Internationale, L-1347 Luxembourg

Time: 10.15 am–6.15 pm

Without organ donations, there can be no transplants 

For some serious illnesses, organ transplantation remains the only treatment that can ensure a patient’s survival. In other cases, an organ transplant can significantly improve quality of life and reduce dependence on devices that support failing organs.

It is therefore essential for Luxembourg to contribute to organ donation so that residents of Luxembourg can benefit from transplants.

In 2025, Luxembourg recorded only 2 donors (compared with 7 in 2023 and 2024). Thanks to these donations, 4 organs were successfully transplanted through the European Eurotransplant network, which coordinates organ procurement and transplantation. At the beginning of 2025, 99 patients were on the national transplant waiting list. A further 55 patients were added over the course of the year. In 2025, 43 residents of the Grand Duchy were able to receive transplants at centres abroad.

Recording your wishes in the Electronic healthcare record

The Electronic healtcare record (Dossier de soins partagé – DSP) allows everyone to clearly record their wishes regarding organ donation. When logging in for the first time, users can consent to or refuse the possible removal of organs after their death. This information has official status and will be checked by the doctor before any procedure. Before any organ retrieval, the doctor must always check the deceased person’s wishes. They consult the DSP and, if no DSP exists or it has been closed, contact the designated trusted person.

The amended Law of 25 November 1982 on organs intended for transplantation establishes the principle that anyone who has not expressed an objection is considered a potential donor.

Press release by the Ministry of Health and Social Security