The Faustao family created an Instagram profile called “@faustaodomeucoracao”, which sparked discussions about organ transplantation online. Following the presenter’s discharge this Sunday (10), the family paid tribute to the transplant recipients this Monday (11).

Faustão was discharged 15 days after transplantation – Photo: Instagram/Reproduction/ND

The profile already has 167 thousand followers on Instagram and 173 publications about the life and recovery of the presenter. However, despite the central theme, the account also asks for donations for people awaiting transplants and honors those who have already had the surgery.

The post, published this Monday morning, tells the story of Natalia Silva. His father Paulo, who lost his wife and daughter in an accident, decided to donate his organs.

“I am a donor and I authorize the donation of my girl’s organs after the accident. I am very happy about Faustan’s transplantation. Let’s donate, let’s save lives. Through a loved one, we can also make him live among other brothers and sisters who are waiting for an organ,” he states.

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Posted by Familia Fausto Silva (@faustaodomeucoracao)

In the profile, the family is still asking for donations for people queuing for organs in the country. The publications are surrounded with phrases such as “they deserve a lot”, “donate organs”, “donate chances”.

Currently, about 68.2 thousand people are waiting for an organ in the queue for the SNT (National Transplantation System).

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), 17.9 million people died from cardiovascular diseases in 2019 – accounting for about a third of all deaths in the world. Of these, 85% were caused by heart attacks or strokes.

Rise of Faustao

The presenter was discharged this Sunday (10) after 15 days of recovery from heart transplant surgery. Faustan himself published a video in which he said that he was already home and thanked him for the affection shown to him.

“Fausto Silva was discharged from the Israelita Albert Einstein Hospital this Sunday, September 10, 2023. The patient will continue to receive necessary medical and nutritional advice for rehabilitation after heart transplantation,” said a medical bulletin issued by Paulista Hospital.

Santa Catarina leads the fundraising

SES/SC (Department of Health of the State of Santa Catarina) through SC Transplantes recorded a record 728 notifications of potential donors in 2022. The state continues to lead the country in transplant donation, according to SNT.

Of the donations, 329 were effective donors, an increase of 35 from 2021. The state also had its best transplant numbers in history in 2022, with 1,521 procedures performed, surpassing the current best record of 1,507 in 2019.

The work of professional teams across the state has played a critical role in the excellent results achieved to date.

“The detection rate for potential brain-dead donors was 99.2 ppm, demonstrating the exceptional effectiveness of transplant coordinators. Non-authorization by families reached 27.4%, which is surprising for the post-pandemic period. It should be remembered that in 2007 there was a 70% family non-permit rate, and after intensive training these numbers have dropped significantly. Although these results are excellent, the challenge remains to improve the education and skills of hospital transplant coordinators to further improve these results,” emphasizes Joel de Andrade, SC Transplantes State Coordinator.

Over two decades of work, SC Transplantes has performed more than 20,600 organ and tissue transplants. The most organs transplanted over all these years were the cornea (9341), deceased donor kidneys (4026), sclera (1883) and liver (1867).

Organ donation in Brazil

According to the Ministry of Health, organ donation in Brazil is carried out according to a number of guidelines and regulations to ensure a safe and ethical process.

• Identification of a potential donor. This process usually begins when a patient is identified as a potential organ donor after a diagnosis of brain death has been made. Brain death is an irreversible condition in which the brain and brain stem lose activity. Identification of a potential donor is carried out by doctors and specialized medical personnel.
• Family Consent: Once a potential donor has been identified, the medical team contacts the family to obtain consent for donation. Family consent is critical and in many cases necessary for donation to proceed.
• Evaluation and Compatibility: Once consent is obtained, the medical team conducts a detailed evaluation of the donor’s organs to determine their condition and compatibility with potential recipients. Organs that can be donated include the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, pancreas and intestines.
• Registration system: Data of donors and available organs are registered in the national transplant system, which helps in finding suitable recipients based on compatibility and urgency.
• Organ allocation: Organ allocation is done based on criteria such as the severity of the recipient’s condition, organ compatibility, and the distance between the donor and the recipient. The goal is to ensure fair and efficient allocation of organs.
• Transplantation. Once suitable recipients are found, the organs are transplanted by specialized medical teams in hospitals authorized to perform transplantation. The surgical process is carried out with the utmost care and precision.
• Monitoring: After transplantation, both donors and recipients are closely monitored to ensure the procedure is successful and free of complications.

It is important to emphasize that the organ donation system is strictly regulated in Brazil and is based on ethical and legal principles. Family consent is considered necessary, and the privacy and confidentiality of donors and recipients is protected.

Raising awareness of the importance of organ donation is essential to increasing donations and saving lives. Many organizations and campaigns in Brazil promote organ donation and offer information on how to become a donor and how to inform your family of your decision to donate organs after death.