THE campaigning family of a Ballymurphy boy who is waiting on the gift of a new heart, have expressed concern about a decline in the number of paediatric heart transplants.

Five-year-old Dáithí Mac Gabhann was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome and requires a new heart. His family, who set up the Donate4Dáithí campaign which raises awareness of organ donation, have spoken out following revelations that the number of children requiring a heart transplant has dramatically increased. 

UK-wide statistics show that the waiting list for a paediatric has increased by almost 75 per cent since Dáithí joined the waiting list for a new heart in 2018.

At the time there were 29 children in total on the waiting list, while 36 children received the gift of a new heart.

According to the NHS Transplant Activity Report published this month there are now 49 children on the waiting list while just 27 children received a heart transplant. The stats mean that the the amount of paediatric heart transplants have decreased by almost 33 per cent in the past four years.

Reacting to the stats, Dáithí's family stated: "This is why our campaign can not afford to lose any momentum. Talking about organ donation can be difficult for people, especially when children are involved.

"However, having conversations with families and parents over the past few years we do feel that our society is ready to hear more about paediatric organ donation, and challenge these statistics.

"Having these challenging conversations can create hope for Dáithí, the 48 other children and all those other people waiting on a life-saving transplant.

"Let's talk about it."

Dáithí and his family helped pave the way for legislation passed earlier this year that will introduce a soft opt-out system whereby people will automatically become organ donors unless they state otherwise.

Overall, the number of people on the organ register has increased from 42 per cent of the population to 52 per cent since Dáithí's family launched their campaign.