AUTHOR=Cozzi Emanuele , Carella Claudia , Puoti Francesca , Masiero Lucia , Forsythe John , Manas Derek , Nathan Naomi , Kaminski Artur , Álvarez Marina , Carmona Mar , Mahíllo Beatriz , Antoine Corinne , López-Fraga Marta , Feltrin Giuseppe , Domínguez-Gil Beatriz 
  
TITLE=The Sex of Donor and Recipients in Solid Organ Transplantation: An in Depth Analysis Across the Council of Europe Member States
  
JOURNAL=Transplant International
  
VOLUME=Volume 39 - 2026
  
YEAR=2026
  
URL=https://www.frontierspartnerships.org/journals/transplant-international/articles/10.3389/ti.2026.15711
  
DOI=10.3389/ti.2026.15711
  
ISSN=1432-2277
  
ABSTRACT=Sex equity in organ donation and access to transplantation represents a key priority of the European Committee on Organ Transplantation of the Council of Europe (CD-P-TO). To increase our knowledge on sex-related differences in transplantation in the Council of Europe Member States, a specifically designed questionnaire was distributed to the CD-P-TO countries. Results confirm that, irrespective of the organ, males represent the majority of patients on the transplant waiting list. For all organs except for heart the time spent on the waiting list was shorter for men compared to women. Women represent the majority of living kidney donors (58%), whilst males are the major source of livers from living donation (54%). Across all organ types, men received 64% of deceased donor organs and 58% of living donor organs. We have found sex-related differences in transplantation activities conducted in the Council of Europe Member States. However, these may be the consequence of the higher incidence of some diseases in men, organ size mismatch, or the greater difficulty in finding immunologically compatible donors in women. At this stage, the CD-P-TO will continue its monitoring activity on this highly relevant topic and possibly extend its commitment beyond sex to include gender related aspects.